


Still the One

by Shaylybaby2032



Category: Jericho (US 2006)
Genre: Angst, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Minor Character Death, Mutual Pining, Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-08
Updated: 2020-02-21
Packaged: 2021-02-28 06:55:22
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 53,192
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22609639
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shaylybaby2032/pseuds/Shaylybaby2032
Summary: The war was over and the good guys had won.When Jake and Hawkins return to Jericho after the war they bring with them someone from Bill's past that he thought he would never see again. Will they be able to work through past mistakes and find happiness with each other? Or are their wounds just to deep to mend?
Relationships: Bill Koehler/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 28
Kudos: 6
Collections: Golden Eyed Encounters





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> AN: Short scene with sixteen year old Jake, Stanley, Bill, and Sabrina in this chapter where Bill and Sabrina have their first kiss.

_13 years ago_

A twenty-one year old Bill Koehler gazed proudly at his brand new deputy sheriff’s uniform hanging on his closet door. Everything was coming up aces for the newest Jericho deputy. The academy in Lawrence had been rough, but he had an amazing support system. All those grueling hours had been more than worth it when he shook Sheriff Dawes’ hand and accepted the position. He had even already been assigned a partner, Jimmy Taylor. He was a few years older than Bill and seemed really happy to have been chosen to show the new recruit the ropes.

Bill's personal life was more than good as well. He had amazing, proud parents, a few good friends that he knew he could count on, and a girlfriend that he loved more than anything. He hoped by the end of the night she would be saying yes to a very important question he intended on asking her.

Sabrina Richmond, his best friend Stanley's cousin. How perfect was it that the love of his life was related to his best friend? They had grown up together and by the time they were sixteen, she was his girlfriend. They went through high school together, celebrated their graduation, took on community college side by side, and she stood by him while he was at the police academy. He had known since the first time he kissed her that he wanted to marry her someday, and tonight he would find out if she wanted the same. 

With one last look in the mirror, he grabbed the keys to his black 1985 Dodge crew cab and headed out the door of his apartment. It was time to head to the Richmond ranch and pick Sabrina up for their date that he had been planning for weeks.

The first thing he noticed when he pulled up to the house was Jake Green's car parked out front. Bill had almost forgotten that the Mayor's oldest son was visiting during a break in his classes at Embry-Riddle in Daytona Beach. While he wasn't the biggest fan of Sabrina's best friend, he was also one of Stanley's, so for their sakes he put up with and held some kind of friendship with Jake. 

Bill shut off his engine and got out of his vehicle as Jake exited the house. Bill waved and said, "Hey, Jake! How ya been?" Nothing was going to put a damper on Bill's mood today!

"Uh…Hi, Bill," Jake said, descending the stairs. "Congrats on making deputy."

Bill quickly realized Jake was avoiding eye contact with him. That was weird. "Thanks," he said slowly. "Everything alright?"

Jake finally met his gaze with a look of… was that sympathy? "Yeah, everything is fine.” He made a B-line for his car. "I'll catch you later."

Bill watched, slightly taken aback as Jake got in his car and sped away down the dirt road leading from the farm. What the hell was all that about? Oh well, he would deal with it later. Bill had more important things on his mind right now.

With unshaking confidence, he walked up to the front door and knocked. He waited for a few seconds and the door opened. A smile he couldn't contain covered his face when his girl's sky blue eyes met his. Her long golden blonde hair was pulled back into a single french braid and her tight jeans and black tank top she wore hugged her curves and took his breath away. She always took his breath away.

It took him a second to realize Sabrina hadn't met him with a smile like she always did. In fact, her eyes were red like she had been crying and she fidgeted in front of him like she was nervous. He suddenly felt himself deflate.

Maybe there _was_ something that could bring him down today.

"Sabi, what's wrong?" he asked.

She chewed her bottom lip and stood aside to let him in. "We need to talk."

Now _he_ was nervous. There weren't many times when anything positive followed those four little words. A million scenarios screamed through his mind as she shut the door and lead him to sit on the couch. She sat right next to him, staring down at her hands clasped together in her lap. Trying to keep down the anxiety raging through him, he reached over to place his hand over hers.

"Tell me what's going on, babe," he encouraged softly.

She took a deep breath and raised her eyes to meet his. "Bill, I got a job offer to be a theater technician and they want to pay for the rest of my college classes so I can eventually be the technical director, maybe even teach it someday."

Was that it? That was fantastic news! It was what she had wanted since she found the theatre department in high school. Bill felt the weight lifted off his shoulders and he drew her in for a hug. "Sabi, that's amazing! I'm so happy for you!" When she didn't return his hug, he pulled away with a sense of dread hanging over his head. Why wasn't she ecstatic? "Why aren't you happy about it?"

"Bill…" she started. "The theatre company is in Los Angeles and they want me out there next week."

Bill felt the air drain from his lungs when he realized what this could mean. "Are you gonna accept it?"

"I...I don't…" She stood from the couch, wrapping her arms around herself and starting to pace in front of the fireplace. "It's an amazing opportunity, Bill. It's my dream come true. They want to pay for school, give me money to get on my feet. I would be insane not to take it!"

Bill got up from the couch and crossed over to pull her into his arms. "Then take it! We can figure it out. We got through me being away at the academy and you've already got your AA and a year into getting your Bachelors. Surely we can do the long distance thing for—"

"I wouldn't be leaving just for school."

"What do you mean?" That sense of dread was turning into full blown panic.

"If I do this," Sabrina started, taking a second to steady herself. "Bill, if I do this I won't be coming back to Jericho. I'll be moving to California permanently."

Bill swallowed hard as he let his arms drop to his sides. "So what does that mean for us?"

"You could come with me," she offered weakly, tears forming in her eyes.

"You know I can't do that!" he snapped, instantly regretting his tone. "What about all our plans?"

"You've known since we were kids I didn't want to be stuck in Jericho the rest of my life, and since Mom died last year I've just felt smothered here."

Anger that Bill wasn't ready for shot through his system. "So you've been _stuck_ with me?! _I_ smother you?!"

"That's not what I said!" Sabrina half shouted, tears starting to fall. "Bill, I love you! You're the best thing in my life!" 

She reached out her hand to him, but he quickly jerked away, his amber eyes blazing with the betrayal he felt. "Yet here you are basically breaking up with me!"

"Bill—"

"Tell me I'm wrong!" he shouted.

The tears flowing freely down her face were tearing his heart from his chest, but her silence as she looked at him with apologetic eyes told him all he needed to know.

"Right," he said and turned to start toward the door.

"Bill! Wait!" Sabrina cried, chasing after him and grabbing his arm.

He wrenched out of her grasp and turned a fury-filled glance at her. "No!" He did his best to calm himself because of the devastation clear in her eyes. "I really do wish you the best. I'm sorry I wasn't enough."

He knew he couldn't handle anything else she could have said to him, so without giving her a chance he quickly exited the house, got in his truck, and tore out of the driveway as fast as those four wheels would carry him.

* * *

_Present Day_

The good guys had won. 

The war was over. 

One and half long grueling years away from home and everything that they loved. But, today, Jake Green and Robert Hawkins would return to Jericho, with medals of honor bestowed upon them by the United States of America. Neither could believe that it was actually over, that they were really about ten minutes from crossing the Jericho city line. Jake smiled to himself as he glanced in the rearview mirror of the SUV he drove. 

The blue eyed blonde sitting in the back smiled at him in return. He couldn't believe he was bringing her home, too. Wouldn't Stanley be surprised. They had all thought Sabrina had been in Los Angeles when the bombs hit, that she had perished along with everyone in the city that had been one of the twenty-three destroyed. Miraculously, she had been in New York at the time and had eventually made her way to Texas. She had used her knowledge of set construction and tools to help rebuild, and when they were running low on help she volunteered at the hospital where Jake found her.

Once the war officially started, she joined Hawkins and Jake in fighting to restore their country, and for over a year they stuck together. When the war had ended and it was time to go home to Jericho, there had been no question that they would do that together too. 

"How you doing back there, Brina?" Jake asked. There was an excitement in his voice that he just couldn't hide, and even Hawkins couldn't help but smile at his ecstatic energy.

"Starting to get a little nervous if I'm being honest," Sabrina said.

"Why?!' Jake asked. "Everyone is going to be thrilled to see you! Stanley won't know what to do with himself!"

"I'm not sure about _everyone_ ," she said, giving her friend a knowing look when she caught his eyes in the mirror again.

Jake grimaced as understanding settled in. "That was thirteen years ago. Bill will be happy to know you are alive just as much as everyone else."

"I guess you're right," she said half-heartedly. "It will be good to finally be home."

"Yes, it will," Hawkins agreed. "Hopefully there will be more of us doing that in the coming months."

"Beck said he's working on finding out the status of every single Jericho citizen that went to fight in the war now that it’s over and he's been put in charge of the rebuild for Western Kansas," Jake reminded them. "He helped defend Jericho against the ASA once he realized what was going on. He'll come through again. He already has delivered a little; some of them came home yesterday."

Jake pulled his SUV onto Maine Street a few minutes later. He, along with his other two passengers, started at the large amount of people putting up red, white, and blue decorations, some of which said "Welcome Home.” Tables were being staged on the sidewalks and grills next to Bailey's. It seemed the town was getting ready to celebrate some of its citizens returning home from the war. A few deputies were helping Mayor Gray set up a temporary stage and podium in front of town hall. Major Beck and some of his men were carrying plastic totes into City Hall from a Humvee parked out front.

"Maybe I should take the long way around," Jake mused. He knew he and his companions weren’t ready for everyone in town to know they were back. They wanted to see their families first.

"I second that," Hawkins said. "Mind dropping me off first? I imagine you'll be at the farm for a while."

"You got it," Jake agreed.

Glad that he had stopped far enough away so that they wouldn't be recognized by passersbys, Jake turned his vehicle around. It only took him a few minutes to travel the backroads to Hawkins' house and reunite him with his family.

With hugs and gratitude from Darcy, Sabrina and Jake got back into the SUV. When he turned the vehicle and headed towards the Richmond farm, she spoke up from beside him in the passenger’s seat.

"Actually," Sabrina started hesitantly. "Can we go see your mom first?"

"Brina—"

"I know! I just need some more time."

Jake sighed and gave his friend a disappointed look, but without saying much else he changed direction and drove to the Green family home.

Gail Green was beyond ecstatic when her oldest son showed up at her door, crying and clinging to him like her life depended on it. However, soon her attention fell on the nervous woman standing behind Jake in her foyer.

"Oh, Sabrina!" Gail cried and wrapped her into a tight hug. "I was so happy when I heard you had survived and even more so when Beck told me Jake was bringing you home!"

Sabrina happily returned the woman's hug, clinging to her much like the older woman had her son. "I'm happy to be home. I'm so sorry about Mr. Green."

Gail pulled away, her eyes still glistening but a smile on her lips as she framed Sabrina's face with her hands. "He would have been so very proud of you. As will your own father." She let her hands fall to her sides. "Have you heard anything about him? He didn't come home with the others yesterday."

"We haven't heard anything," Sabrina replied. "But Beck is doing what he can to find out about him and the rest of the men and women that haven't come back yet."

"How have things been with him since we left?" Jake asked.

"Once he realized what was really happening he was determined to fix his mistakes," Gail said. "He and his men booted J&R out within days and then started working with the rangers to defend most of Western Kansas. When the USA finally got here they all helped push them completely out of the state."

"I'm glad to hear that," Jake said, relieved. "How is everyone doing here?"

"We're putting ourselves back together," Gail told him. "Beck kept the power on and restored our phones. The internet came back a few days ago. Cell service is next. Stanley and Mimi are planning their wedding now. Jimmy and Bill have been keeping the police department running. Eric and Mary are engaged, and Gray made your brother deputy mayor."

"Who replaced me as sheriff?"

Gail chuckled lightly. "Beck and Gray offered the position to Bill and Jimmy. Was even going to hold an election. But both said they already had a sheriff and were just holding down the fort until he came home." 

"They still want _me_ as sheriff?!" Jake asked incredulously. 

"Of course they do!" Gail enthused. She turned to Sabrina again. "But enough of that. Why aren't you on your way to see Stanley? Does he even know you're here?"

"Not yet," Sabrina admitted. "I wanted to see you and just needed a little more time."

"Well! We need to remedy that! I'll go call him right now!" Gail said and walked into the living room to pick up the receiver of her landline. "Have you gone to see Emily yet?" she asked Jake, dialing Stanley's number.

"I was gonna go after I dropped Brina off at Stanley's," Jake said. "Now I think I'll wait until he comes here."

Gail nodded and started speaking into the phone. "Stanley! How are you… I'm good. I think you should get up to the house though. Jake just got home and he has a surprise for you."

Both Jake and Sabrina could hear Stanley's excited chatter on the other end of the line. He shouted to who they assumed was Mimi that their friend was home and they needed to get to the Green's.

"OK, Stanley," Gail said happily. "We'll see you soon." She hung up the phone and turned her attention back to Jake and Sabrina. "He's on his way, more than likely bringing Mimi."

"That's his fiancé, right?" Sabrina asked. "Jake did his best to catch me up on everyone."

"I'm glad to hear it! You're just going to love Mimi, and I'm sure catching up with Stanley will be wonderful!" The older woman paused, soft smile taking over her features. "Are you planning on catching up with Bill, too? I'm thinking he'll be very happy to see you as well."

"Uh…um…" Sabrina stammered. "I'm not so sure about that…Do you mind if I use your restroom?"

"Of course, you know where it is," Gail responded, her smile growing.

"Mom!" Jake scolded after Sabrina had disappeared into the downstairs bathroom. "Way to be subtle."

"It was just a suggestion."

* * *

A few minutes later Sabrina found herself being ushered into the kitchen out of sight as the sound of two vehicles pulled into the Green’s driveway. She sat at the kitchen table waiting somewhat nervously when she heard the front door open and Stanley's loud cheer ring through the house. She couldn't help but smile and feel a little better at her cousin's voice.

"It's great to have you back, Jake!" Stanley said excitedly.

"Just in time for the welcome home celebration, too!" a new female voice added. That must be Mimi.

Her nerves fell away listening to them, at least until she heard the voice of the third person that had apparently arrived with Stanley and his fiancé.

"You have to come tomorrow, Jake," Bill said. "Hawkins too if he came back with you."

The rest of the conversation died away in her ears, her heart leaping into her throat. It may have been thirteen years since she last spoke to him, but with everything that had happened over the last two years Bill—and how they had left things—had been ever present in her mind. Leaving the way she had was always one of her biggest regrets and she would have given anything to fix what she had broken. 

But she wasn't ready to face him, not yet.

"Hey Mrs. Green, you mind if I grab a glass of water?" Bill's voice came floating back into the kitchen, followed by footsteps moving towards the kitchen door.

"Bill! Wait!" Jake said urgently.

Shit! He was coming in the kitchen! She stood too quickly, knocking the wooden chair she had been sitting in over, causing a loud bang when it clattered to the floor. Dammit!

Before she could even move to pick up the piece of furniture, Bill's form filled the threshold and they both froze, his golden eyes meeting her sky blue ones. Jake appeared a few seconds later, followed by Stanley whose mouth instantly fell open.

"Uh... Surprise," Jake started weakly. "Look who I found in Texas."

Bill couldn't move or speak as he watched Stanley surge forward with tears in his eyes, the man scooping up Sabrina into a hug that had her feet dangling above the ground. He was vaguely aware of Mimi asking who she was and Jake answering her before they both walked past him for Stanley to properly introduce his fiancé. He had thought she was dead, that she had been in L.A. when the bombs went off. How was she standing in front of him. How was this real?

Gail's hand on his shoulder jerked him back into what was going on. Swiveling his head around quickly, he was met with a smile and encouraging eyes.

"Go say hi," Gail told him.

He nodded and turned back just as Sabrina looked his way again. A silence settled over the room as they both stood, unsure of what to do.

"Bill, I—"

She didn't have time to finish before he was across the room and pulling her into his arms. She returned his hug eagerly, burying her face into the crook of his neck when his hold tightened. 

It was no secret to even Mimi that the reunion embrace the two shared lasted longer than the others. She turned to Stanley with an arched brow that he responded to by mouthing the words "I'll explain later."

"So," Stanley began after the two had reluctantly pulled away from one another. "How did you survive? We all thought…"

"I was in New York running tech for a production of _Rent,_ " Sabrina started to explain. "After the bombs went off, I stayed there for a while but things got bad quick so a few of my co-workers and I left. Bounced around a few camps until we finally made it to Texas. We helped them rebuild, volunteered at hospitals, and that's how Jake found me."

"Well I'm glad he did," Stanley said, hugging her again, a sadness entering his eyes. "Do you know about Bonnie?"

Sabrina nodded into his chest. "Jake told me. I'm so sorry Stanley."

His arms tightened around her for a moment before the sound of the front door in the other room opening and closing pulled them from their embrace.

"Mom?" Eric Green's voice called.

"Oh, it's your brother!" Gail said happily, grabbing Jake's hand and dragging him out of the kitchen with Stanley and Mimi trailing behind them.

An awkward silence settled between Bill and Sabrina without the buffer of the others. They both fidgeted nervously, looking around for something to do. Bill suddenly turned to grab a glass from the cabinet and filled it with water from the sink. Sabrina moved to pick up the chair she had knocked over. 

Sooner than either wanted, they turned and faced each other again and their eyes locked.

_Sixteen-year-old Jake and Sabrina sat at the kitchen table, their Chemistry text books open in front of them. Sabrina jotted down the information in her notebook for their upcoming test diligently, every so often discreetly glancing over to make sure Jake was doing the same._

_With a rush of opening doors and hurried footsteps, Bill and Stanley came rushing into the kitchen_

_"Jake!" Stanley said, almost bouncing with excitement. "You gotta come see this! Dad gave me his old truck!"_

_"What?!" Jake asked, jumping up from his seat. "That's awesome!"_

_The two boys quickly ran out of the room towards the front door. Sabrina shook her head, refocusing on her studies when she heard the front door slam. Bill watched her for a second, glancing at the direction his friends had gone before he made a decision and moved to sit next to her. He shifted nervously in his chair, trying to come up with something to say._

_"Why didn't you go with them?" Sabrina asked, not taking her eyes from her book._

_"Already seen it," Bill said, mad at himself for not coming up with something more clever._

_"Suit yourself," she said with a shrug._

_Bill racked his brain, slowly starting to worry about how long the stretch of silence was becoming. "What are you working on?" he finally asked._

_"Studying for the Chemistry test tomorrow," she said. "Ms. Kemper made it clear Jake has to pass this test if he has any hope of passing the class."_

_Quiet settled over them again and Bill found himself scrambling for something to say again._

_"You look really pretty today!" he said before he could stop himself. She looked up at him with a slightly confused look and he started fumbling over his words. "I mean… Not that you don't look pretty every day! Because you do! I mean… I… I think you're pretty every day!"_

_Bill wasn't sure where the sudden rush of courage came from, but he decided he should go with it and leaned forward to press a quick kiss to her lips._

_"I really like you, Sabi," he admitted. "And I really want you to be my girlfriend. Whaddya say?"_

_He wasn't prepared for the amount of anxiety that rolled through him as soon as the words left him mouth, and he kind of wanted to dig a hole and hide in it._ _But then she smiled, the uneasiness lifting from his shoulders, his face mirroring hers._

_"I thought you'd never ask, Koehler."_

Bill suddenly found himself staring at the two chairs they had sat in all those years ago, and he shook his head to clear the memory away. He glanced back up to her, wondering if maybe she was remembering the same thing he was. The look in her eyes told him that she was and he looked away, clearing his throat.

Sabrina couldn't believe that so much time had passed since they had been in that very kitchen with their whole lives ahead of them, neither dreaming that things would end between them the way they had. The heavy silence was starting to weigh on her. She desperately wanted to tell him how sorry she was and the real reason why Jake so easily convinced her to come home to Jericho.

"How've you been?"

"How are you doing?"

They both spoke at the same time, their words running together when they focused on each other again. They both laughed nervously before Bill spoke up again.

"All things considered, I'm good."

"Yeah," she said. "Same here."

"Texas must have been a big change for you," Bill said, trying to keep the conversation moving. He placed his glass on the counter and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Yeah, but, I mean, really everything was. I'm just glad we got there before the ASA started rolling through."

"You got anything waiting on you to come back there?" He hated that he couldn't keep himself from asking the question.

"No," she said, shaking her head. "My job was pretty much done there."

"So how long are you in Jericho for?"

"I guess it just depends on how things go in the next few months."

Bill nodded and another silence stretched between them. She watched his gaze turn to the floor and she braced herself, finally crossing the room to him. He glanced at her with a quizzical look and she wrapped her arms around herself, meeting his eyes.

"Ya know," she started softly. "When the bombs went off and everything went to hell… you were one of the first people that I thought of. Wondering if you were OK. Realizing how much I still missed you."

Anger shot through him at her words and his eyes narrowed. "Glad to know I was in your head somewhere," he snapped.

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

"Well you sure as hell didn't give a damn if I was OK when you left me!"

"What the hell, Bill?!" she demanded, her own ire showing, her voice raising. "That was thirteen years ago! Things are different now!"

"Bombs and war doesn't change the fact that you gave up on us!"

Their rising voices pulled Jake and Stanley back into the room with worried and confused expressions.

"What's going on you two?" Jake asked sternly.

"Nothing," Bill said shortly. "Glad you're home safe, Jake, but I can't be here." His arms dropped to his sides as he started to storm for the back door in the kitchen.

"Bill! Wait! Please!" Sabrina pleaded, reaching out and grabbing his arm.

He jerked out of her grasp and he rounded on her. "No, Sabrina!" he bit out. " _You_ left _me_ ! Then I didn't see or hear from you for thirteen fucking years! Bombs and war don't give you the right to just show up and start saying how much you _missed_ me! It's way too damn late for that!"

The tears in her eyes and the pain all over her face clenched and ripped at his heart, and he instantly wanted to take it all back. But… he wouldn't. Instead, he turned and continued his path to the door, slamming it behind him when he left.

He had made it halfway to his Dodge truck parked behind Stanley's before he heard Jake's angry voice behind him.

"Bill! What the hell is your damn problem?!"

Bill turned, leveling his eyes at the man stalking up to him. "I think I made it pretty clear what my problem is."

"She accepted a job! It's not like she had any opportunities here!"

"This so isn't about the damn job!"

"Then what?!"

"It doesn't matter!" Bill growled and turned to make the rest of the trip back to his truck, getting in, and driving away as soon as he turned on the engine.

* * *

Later that night with the reunions complete, Stanley and Mimi brought Sabrina back to the Richmond farm, both of them insisting that she make it her home. Sabrina buried down the hurt and disappointment of her earlier interaction with Bill and made the most of her evening with her cousin and his fiancé. They had given her a tour of what had changed around the farm, stopping to pay their respects to Bonnie, and then made their way inside to cook dinner together.

With dinner done, they gathered in the living room, Stanley and Mimi together on the couch and Sabrina in the adjacent arm chair. Sabrina watched the couple with a smile on her face as they caught up, she and Mimi getting to know one another better. Before long Stanley was snoring softly with his head in Mimi's lap while she ran her fingers through his hair.

"Thank you, Mimi," Sabrina said quietly so she wouldn't wake her sleeping cousin.

Mimi glanced up with a smile on her face. "For what?"

"For taking care of Stanley. For loving him and Bonnie as much as you do."

"Oh, you don't have to thank me for that. I'm so happy to be here with him." Mimi worried at her bottom lip, wondering if she should start the conversation that had been burning in her mind since earlier that day. "So, how are you doing? I know the subject was kind of pushed to the side, but you looked pretty upset after what happened with Bill."

Sabrina sighed, pulling her knees up to her chest. "I'll be OK. It was pretty much the reaction I expected. To be honest, I kinda deserved it."

"What happened between you two?"

"We were together from the time we were sixteen until we were twenty-one. I got a job offer in California and things didn't end well between us."

"I'm sorry," Mimi said genuinely. "Were things bad before the break up?"

"Not at all. Things were wonderful. He was my first kiss, my first love, my first _everything_. We just both had these big dreams, and unfortunately, his included Jericho and mine didn't."

"I know that had to be hard. But I get it, there are some opportunities you just can't pass up."

"Yeah, except, I never stopped regretting leaving him," Sabrina told her. "That job was my dream come true, but it never felt quite complete without him. Nor did anyone I dated after ever really measure up to him. He was always the one that got away, and after the bombs and everything went to hell, I realized… well… it doesn't really matter now I guess."

"I think it does," Mimi said definitively. "He obviously still cares about you."

Sabrina arched her brow in disbelief. "I know you heard that fight we had."

"I also saw the look on his face when he saw you standing there in that kitchen, and the way he hugged you. Yes, he's still hurt and angry, but he does still care about you."

"Maybe," Sabrina said, still not convinced. "Either way, it's pretty clear he doesn't want me in his life."

"Give him some time," Mimi suggested. "Bill is a really good guy. He'll come around eventually and you two can hopefully at least salvage a friendship."

"We'll see."

* * *

Over the next two weeks, Sabrina focused on settling back into a life in Jericho. She finally agreed to take Stanley and Mimi up on their offer to live

with them and she spent most days helping them around the farm to get ready for the upcoming fall harvest. What little time she didn't spend working there, she was in town looking for a job so she could help her cousin pay for the expenses the money from the crop wouldn't cover. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a whole lot in the small town that was still working to get back on their feet.

After one fruitless day of searching, she stopped at City Hall and made her way into the police department to see how her friend was doing in his position as sheriff. She laughed upon entering his office, finding him standing over his desk trying to sort through a stack of paperwork clad in a pair of dark blue jeans and a gray t-shirt. Jake looked up at her and grinned as she entered.

"What are you laughing at?" he asked.

"Your blatant refusal to wear a uniform."

He rolled his eyes and flashed the badge clipped to the waist of his jeans and turned back to the papers on his desk. "I'm getting there."

Sabrina chuckled, moving to perch on the end of his desk. She glanced down at what he was working on. "What are you doing?"

"Trying to get all these damn reports organized," he gruffed, not looking up from his task.

"Since when is that the sheriff's responsibility?"

"Since I need Bill and Jimmy out on the streets working with the other deputies to get things running smoothly again," Jake replied, not looking up from his task. "You should see what they've already taken care of. Makes this stack look like a single sheet. I really don't know how they managed to run this place doing the job of twelve and not work themselves to death."

"Yeah, I've heard around town how much they've put into the department since the bombs. Not what I meant though."

Jake raised his eyes to her, brow furrowed. "What did you mean then?"

"Don't you have a records clerk?"

"No," Jake told her. "It was one of the first positions that got abandoned when the bombs dropped and pay was cut. Gray and I were just able to put the position into the budget like three days ago."

She perked up at the mention of the open job. "Have you started taking applications for it yet?" she asked hopefully.

Jake looked like he could have kissed her with the relief that washed over his face. "If you want the job, it's yours! You'll have to turn in an application to Gray, but I'll tell him I've already made my decision." Hesitation suddenly settled into his face. "There's something you should know though."

"I know, _Sheriff Green_ , no special treatment!" she teased with a chuckle.

"Not what I'm talking about."

"OK?"

"You should know I plan on offering Bill the position of undersheriff as soon as he comes back in from patrol today. I promoted Jimmy to chief deputy yesterday. They've both more than earned it."

"I couldn't agree more," Sabrina said. "I'm glad you aren't letting personal reasons interfere with your job. Besides, I'm not mad at Bill. He had every right to react the way he did."

"He doesn't have a right to yell at you," Jake said, holding back his anger.

"He didn't yell at me. We both raised our voices. That's it."

"I guess you're right," he finally admitted.

A commotion in the other room caught their attention and they both looked up and through the glass separating Jake's office to find a few of the day shift deputies coming in from the end of their shift. Sabrina's breath hitched in her throat as Bill walked in next to Jimmy. She bit her bottom lip, trying to fight the blush that threatened to color her cheeks. It was the first time she had seen him in uniform and she couldn't do anything but admire the way it hugged his body in all the right places. The sight of his ass alone in the tight pants he wore had her trying to remember how to breathe.

Jake suddenly cleared his throat, and she jumped off his desk, turning around to grab some of the papers he had been sorting. She tried very hard to focus on the words written on them, but her brain refused to agree. She also pointedly ignored the Cheshire cat grin her best friend had plastered all over his face.

"So, this application I need to fill out…" she said, hoping he wouldn't bring up what he had seen.

"See something you like out there?"

"Shut up, Jake!"

* * *

Undersheriff! Bill still couldn't believe it! Jake Green had offered him the job of being the police department's second-highest ranked officer, and he'd accepted it on the spot.

A smile clung to his lips as he got out of his truck the next morning and headed into City Hall. He waved at Jimmy walking into the police department and then headed to his desk where he stopped abruptly in his tracks.

Sabrina was sitting at the desk right next to his, stacks of police reports and other paperwork completely covering the surface while she sorted through them and put them in their appropriate places in the filing cabinets behind her.

He had almost forgotten Jake telling him that he had hired her to be the new records clerk. Of course, it hadn't clicked with him then that her desk was obviously going to be the one near where all their records were kept…in front of the filing cabinets…right next to his desk. 

Wonderful.

So much for avoiding her.

He would just have to suck it up. Though, now that he was seeing her again, he felt terrible for the way he had acted toward her at the Greens'. Even if she had broken his heart, and seeing her again after all those years, thinking she had died in the attack, dredging up anger and hurt he thought he had long since moved on from, she still hadn’t deserved to be treated like that. He sighed heavily and turned to make his way over to the coffee pot set up in the corner of the room and poured two cups, fixing one the way he hoped she still liked it.

She had been too engrossed in her task to even realize he was standing in front of her desk until he set the styrofoam cup down on the only empty spot in front of her. She looked up at him with wide blinking eyes, and he felt his heart stutter. Dammit! Why did she have to be just as beautiful now as she was back then?

"Um… thank you," she said, uncertainty all over her face now.

"It's a peace offering," he said. "I'm sorry for the way I acted. There were a million other ways we could have had that conversation and I chose the worst."

"It's OK, I get it," she smiled softly at him and took a sip of her coffee, her eyes going round again when the flavor hit her tongue. "You remembered."

"Kinda hard to forget coffee flavored sugar," he chuckled.

_"Pleeeeeeease, Bill!!!" Sabrina pleaded, sitting across his lap on the couch in his temporary apartment in Lawrence. She placed a series of kisses on his cheek and down his jawline while she wrapped her arms around his shoulders._

_"Why do you want me to make it so bad?" he asked, chuckling softly and leaning into her affection._

_"Cos no one makes my coffee like you do, and with you at the academy, the only time I get it is when I visit every other weekend."_

_"OK! OK! I'll make you some coffee flavored sugar," he said and turned his head to press their lips together. "You know I'd do anything for you, Sabi."_

"Yeah, I guess that _is_ kinda hard to forget," Sabrina said, a small smile on her face. "So, does this mean we can try to be friends?"

He really wanted to say yes, but there was still part of him that didn't think he was ready for that. "I uh…I'm sorry, Sabrina. I just don't think I'm quite there yet." He hated himself for the look of disappointment that appeared on her features. "Let's just take it one day at a time for now and we'll see."

"Yeah, OK," she said, standing and turning towards the filing cabinet. She grabbed a blue file folder and turned back to hand it to him. "I need your signature on these. Pass them off to Jake when you're done. He needs to sign them too."

"What is this?" he asked, letting her change the subject and opening the folder to look at the papers inside.

"The paperwork for your promotion," Sabrina explained. "Gray wants everything to be official so we can prove our chain of command if we have to. Congratulations, by the way. From what I've heard you've earned it ten times over."

"Thanks," Bill said, moving to his desk to sign the papers.

"Sabrina Richmond!"

The two turned at the voice to see a Jericho deputy walking up to them with crew cut black hair and dark brown eyes. His tall stature loomed over Sabrina, quickly pulling her in for a hug.

"Uh, hi Calvin," Sabrina said, pulling away.

"Damn, it sure is good to see you again!" Calvin said, ignoring Bill and looking Sabrina up and down. "I heard rumors that you were back in town."

"Yeah, came back with Jake two weeks ago."

Bill watched them from the corner of his eye, pretending to focus on the papers in front of him. He didn't like the way Calvin was looking at her and it sent his blood boiling.

"We should go grab a drink tonight and catch up," Calvin suggested.

Did he just ask her out?! Bill had to bite his tongue to keep himself from voicing his opinion. Was he really doing this right in front of him?! However, Bill did take some solace in the fact that the look on Sabrina's face clearly said she wasn't into the idea.

"Maybe some other time," Sabrina said. "I've got a lot going on right now."

Bill almost laughed at the way Calvin's face fell and shot a glare in his direction. Calvin Riley wasn't used to being turned down once he set his sights on someone.

"Yeah," Calvin said, already turning to leave. "Definitely some other time."

Bill smiled to himself, watching the deputy retreat to the other side of the room looking for anything to busy himself with.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The fall festival returns to Jericho and may just help Bill and Sabrina restart their friendship.

A month and a half after Sabrina returned to town, Stanley came rushing into the kitchen of the farm house with a huge grin on his face. Mimi and Sabrina looked up from their places at the table where they were sipping their coffee as he entered, the man's jubilation spilling over and bringing smiles to their faces as well.

"What are you so excited about?" Mimi asked.

"I just got off the phone with Gray. He wants to start up the fall festival again. He thinks it would be good for town morale. He still has to get a few more of the farms on board and build a committee for it, but he wants us to have a booth so we can sell some of our pumpkins and squash. Maybe come up with some activities as well!"

"Oh, Stanley! That's fantastic!" Mimi exclaimed as she and Sabrina both jumped up to hug him.

"It is!" Stanley agreed. "I sold a lot of the fall harvest to Dale, but we had so much he couldn't buy it all. This is just the opportunity we need! Oh! Brina! You can make some of your pumpkin pies and zucchini bread! They were always a hit at the festival when we were younger!"

"Absolutely!" Sabrina said. "Anything I can do to help! I'll even show Mimi how to make them if she wants!"

"Only if we make some just for us!" Mimi said happily. "Do you know how long it's been since I've had homemade pumpkin pie?!"

"I'm so glad you two are as excited about this as I am!" Stanley said, smiling proudly. An idea struck him and he was quickly moving to grab his coat from a hook by the back door. "You mind if I follow you into work today, Brina? I'd like to help Gray get this thing rolling any way I can."

"Sure!" Sabrina said excitedly. "Let's head out now and I'll go in with you to offer my services as well!"

* * *

Within two days, Sabrina and Stanley worked with the mayor to pull in support from the rest of the farms in Jericho along with Gail Green, Emily Sullivan, Heather Lizinski, and Darcy Hawkins. Twenty-four hours later, Jake had nearly every person on his police force volunteering to help in any way they could, and by day four the rest of the town was on board as well. Even Major Beck and his men were excited, offering to help set up the booths and even coming up with the idea for a chili cook-off.

In two weeks time, all the plans had been made and a date was set with a full list of activities and merchant stalls. It warmed Sabrina's heart that her hometown had seemed to keep its sense of family, even through the devastation it had encountered over the past couple years. As she watched the townspeople work together and help each other, she slowly started to wonder why she had ever had the urge to leave so badly. 

With the first day of the festival only two days away, Mimi and Sabrina set up in the kitchen of the farmhouse to prepare pies and bread to be sold at their booth. It didn't take long for Stanley to start sniffing around, stealing what bites he could here and there, and once he had mentioned to Jake what his cousin and fiancé were doing, a patrol car rolled up in front of the house with the sheriff and Jimmy Taylor inside.

"We got a call from Mr. Richmond here saying there was some highly illegal activity going on in this kitchen," Jimmy said jokingly as he and Jake entered through the back door.

Both Mimi and Sabrina rolled their eyes with laughter as they continued with their baking.

"Is that so?" Sabrina asked.

"It's a fact. 'Fraid we're gonna have to take some of this evidence back to the station to have it tested," Jake said with a smile, gesturing towards the table filled with cooling baked goods.

"Uh huh," Mimi said, closing the oven and turning to them. "I think  _ Mr. Richmond _ is just sore he doesn't have his own pie or loaf yet."

Stanley placed his hand over his heart in mock offense. "Are you saying I made false accusations?!"

"That's exactly what I'm saying," Mimi said playfully.

"However!" Sabrina exclaimed, crossing to the refrigerator and pulling out three dark green fabric bags. "We prepared a bribe in case we faced this type of betrayal." She moved to hand two of the bags to Jake and one to Jimmy. "One loaf of zucchini bread and one pumpkin pie a piece. The third bag is for Bill. I'm surprised he didn't come with you. That man  _ loves _ his pumpkin pie!"

"Uh… yeah," Jimmy said, looking to the ground, all the mirth falling from his and Jake's face. "He um…" The chief deputy turned to Jake for help.

"He's putting the finishing touches on the security schedule for the festival," Jake said lamely, knowing full well that everyone in the room knew that was his responsibility and he'd already taken care of it. "We wanted to make sure everyone with a family had plenty of time to enjoy the festival with them."

Sabrina nodded solemnly, trying to push down the pang in her heart. "Well, that does need to be taken care of. Will you guys make sure he gets his stuff then?"

"I'll see to it personally," Jimmy offered, taking Bill's bag of baked goods from Jake. "Promise."

"Thanks, Jimmy."

* * *

Jimmy Taylor pulled his patrol car into the front drive of a split-level house on the edge of town just as night was setting in. The lower level was a dark red brick with charcoal gray siding on the top, a slate colored dormer roof, and a porch stretching across the front of the house with three stone steps and lined with intricate iron railings. The chief deputy shut off his engine and made his way to the front door with the green fabric bag in tow. He knocked on the door and waited patiently until Bill opened the door smiling.

"Hey, Jimmy!" Bill said happily. "What brings you by tonight? You wanna come in?"

"No, Margret will have dinner ready soon. I just stopped by to bring you this," Jimmy told him, extending the bag towards the other man. Bill took the offered container and turned questioning eyes to his friend. "From Sabrina. Pumpkin pie, zucchini bread, and fresh whipped cream."

"Oh." Bill looked down at the bag in his hands with a hint of pain in his eyes. "Thanks for bringing it by."

"You're welcome, but I shouldn't have had to."

There was something in Jimmy's voice that Bill didn't hear often and it had him quickly bringing his gaze up to meet his friend's. Jimmy was upset… _ with him _ !

"Ya know, Bill, it's really not my place…" Jimmy started. "Actually, it kinda is. You're one of my best friends, and friends are supposed to tell each other when they're being idiots, and right now you are being a  _ huge _ idiot. You got a second chance with the girl that you thought got away, and you're about to screw it up because you can't get over decisions that were made when you were  _ both _ young and dumb!"

"Jimmy—"

"I'm not done! Why don't you ask her the  _ real _ reason why she came back to Jericho, and while you're at it, why don't you ask yourself why you  _ haven't _ asked that question. I know you still care about each other. Hell, everyone that sees you two knows, except the two of you apparently. Does she even know that you live in this house?!"

"No," Bill said quietly. He couldn't look his friend in the eye anymore.

_ Bill pulled his old red truck across the street from the split-level house Sabrina had directed him to while he drove and shut off his engine. His head swiveled in her direction, his curiosity meeting her barely contained excitement just for a moment before she quickly exited the vehicle, nearly tripping on the footbar as she did. With a soft chuckle he followed her actions, closing his door just as she came around the front of the truck and walked to the middle of the road, holding her arms out in a sweeping gesture towards the house. _

_ "Whaddya think?" she asked and spun around to face him. _

_ "Uh...it's a house?" Bill replied in question. He really wasn't sure where she was going with this, but she had that smile on her face that always seemed to make him weak and he didn't want to make it go away. _

_ "I know it's a house," she laughed and walked up to wrap her arms around his neck just, his hands automatically settling on her hips. "But what if it was  _ **_our_ ** _ house?" _

_ Bill's eyes flicked towards the house that clearly had light coming from the windows indicating someone lived there and noted the absence of a 'for sale' sign. "I think there may be a few issues with that, babe," he said, bringing his gaze back to hers. _

_ "Let me hear your concerns and I bet I can put them to rest." _

_ Bill couldn't help but smile at her confidence. "Well, aside from the fact that we're eighteen, have no credit built up, we’re heading to college, and I just started renting my first apartment last month, there’s obviously someone living there, and I don't see a 'for sale' sign." _

_ Sabrina's confident smile never faltered. "All of that is true, however when Mr. and Mrs. Carpenter's daughter graduates they are moving back to Tennessee and putting the house up for sale. By the time that happens, we will be twenty-five, have our credit building, and you'll have a criminal justice degree. You’ll also have been a deputy for four years and I'll have my degree and be working, too. So, we'll have money saved up, and…maybe…we'll have been married for a few years or at least…I don't know...engaged." _

_ The grin on Bill's face was large enough to make his face hurt, but he didn't care—he was focusing on what Sabrina had just said. "You wanna marry me?" _

_ "Well, yeah," she said, nervously averting her gaze. "Someday, when we're both ready for that step. I'm not saying I want a proposal now, but I think we'll get there one day." _

_ His hand came up to cup the side of her face and her eyes snapped back to his. "And this is the house you want?" _

_ She nodded her confirmation as a smile grew back on her lips. _

_ "Then we'll see what we can do about making those dreams come true," he said. _

_ Sabrina let out a squeal of excitement and crushed her lips to his. _

"No, she doesn't," Bill told Jimmy. "I haven't mentioned it at least. I don't know if Stanley or Jake have."

Jimmy sighed, meeting his friend's eyes. "You're family to Margaret and me, Bill. We just wanna see you happy. Don't forget we were the ones that were there when things ended between you two. Just think about things. OK?" He waited for Bill to nod his agreement and he turned to walk back to his vehicle. "Good! I'll see ya tomorrow!"

"Do you really think we have a shot at fixing things?" Bill asked as Jimmy's hand closed on the handle of his car door.

"Well, you were the only one that got that homemade whipped cream you love," Jimmy said with a wink.

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"It's the little things that build the bigger picture."

* * *

Sabrina sat on the front porch of the Richmond house watching the moon shine over the fields. Cold weather had definitely come to Kansas and she closed her jacket around her in an attempt to keep out the chill. She felt silly for worrying about someone who had obviously long since moved on with his life, yet she still felt the same heartache she had thirteen years ago.

When the front door opened, she looked up to see Stanley walking out with a smile on his face, but his eyes held a sense of concern and over-protectiveness. She scooted over on the bench seat and he sat down with his arm around her shoulders. They sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes before he finally spoke up.

"Want me to kick his ass?"

A laughed bubbled from Sabrina's chest and she leaned her head on her cousin's shoulder. "No, Stanley. He's one of your best friends."

"So," Stanley said defiantly. "He's making you sad and he obviously needs some sense knocked into him. I would be a terrible friend if I didn't help him with that."

"Could you really bring yourself to hit Bill?"

"No," he gruffed. "I'd give him a stern talking to, though."

"Because that worked so well the last time you tried it."

_ Stanley was pacing angrily in his living room when Bill and Sabrina walked through the front door laughing. The two shared a worried glance as the door clicked closed behind them. _

_ "Stanley, what's wrong?" Sabrina asked. "Where's Bonnie?" _

_ "She's sleeping!" Stanley snapped. _

_ "Seriously, what's going on?" Bill asked. _

_"What's going on?!" Stanley said with a bitter laugh. "_ ** _This_** _is what's wrong!" He pulled a half-used pack of birth control pills out of his pocket and tossed them on the coffee table. "Are you two sleeping together?!"_

_ Bill bit his bottom lip, trying not to laugh while anger blazed in Sabrina's blue eyes. _

_ "Why are you going through my stuff, Stanley?!" she demanded, walking up to him. _

_ "I didn't! I picked up your purse from the table earlier and they fell out!" he bit out. "Now answer my question!" _

_ "So what if we are?!" Sabrina shouted. "We are both nineteen years old and we are obviously being smart about it!" _

_ "And at least we waited until we were both eighteen the first time. Unlike  _ **_some_ ** _ people we know," Bill added. "Besides, it's not really any of your business. We are both consenting adults and like Sabi said," he pointed to the birth control pack, "we are being smart about it." _

_ "That's not the point!" Stanley yelled. _

_ "Then what  _ **_is_ ** _ the point?" Bill asked, he was starting to get annoyed now and moved to stand next to his girlfriend. _

_ Stanley's anger faltered, searching his brain for what to say. "STDs! Birth control pills don't protect against that!" _

_ "So now you're saying we're sleeping around on each other!" Bill said. Now  _ **_he_ ** _ was mad. _

_ "Of course not!" Stanley was losing this fight and he knew it. "What will people say? You know how people talk in this town!" _

_ "Neither of us give a damn about that!" Bill snapped. _

_ Stanley grumbled to himself for a few seconds, unable to come up with a valid point. "Well, not under this roof!" _

_ "A little late for that," Bill scoffed as he crossed his arms over his chest. _

_ Stanley blanched and looked back and forth between the two. "Whatever," he mumbled and turned to walk up the stairs. "Just don't knock her up!" _

_ Bill turned back to Sabrina once her cousin was gone and they both burst with laughter. _

"That was a completely different situation!" Stanley said defensively.

"He still schooled you," Sabrina chuckled.

"Whatever," Stanley groused, trying to come up with a different topic. "Was Jake able to give you Friday off so you can help us set up our booth for the festival?"

"Yeah," Sabrina said with a hint of uncertainty. "But I think I'm going to head in for a few hours anyway after we get everything set up."

"Why?" Stanley was thoroughly confused for a second before the reason came to him. "Oh. Bill is working the morning security for the festival that day with Jake." Her silence told him what he needed to know. "Do you really think avoiding him is going to fix anything?"

Sabrina shrugged.

"You two really need to sit down and hash out your issues. At least get to where you can be friends. Thanksgiving is coming up fast and I'd really like to be able to have everyone I care about in one room again."

"Well hopefully we can get there," Sabrina said half-heartedly.

* * *

"Did you ever think we would see something like this again?" Bill asked, a fond smile on his face while he walked through the crowded fall festival with Jake at his side.

The entire town had shown up for the festival that Friday morning inside the high school's gym, spilling over onto the football field. The Jericho Panthers’ maroon and gold colors proudly decorated the space and each booth, and because the students were on a fall break from classes, most of the older ones were helping out with the activities for the younger kids. Happy faces were all around, with the smells of the season doing their part to heighten the mood. Even Robert Hawkins had been pulled into the joyous occasion and was currently happily painting a pumpkin with his kids and wife for the pumpkin decorating contest. They had  _ all  _ definitely come a long way.

"No, I didn't," Jake said honestly. "But I'm so glad it happened. The town needed this."

"I agree," Bill said.

The two made their rounds through the field and back inside the gym, greeting people as they went and stopping here and there to talk to their friends at different booths. Finally, they came upon Stanley and Mimi, who had a line half way down the gym of people waiting to buy pumpkin pie, zucchini bread, or both, and their supplies were already running low.

"Damn!" Jake exclaimed. He and Bill walked into the booth. "It's not even noon and you guys are almost cleaned out!"

Stanley grinned, quickly bagging up pies and bread. "Yeah, our pumpkins, peppers, potatoes, yams, and squash are moving pretty fast, too."

"Stanley is gonna have to go back to the house and grab more once Brina comes back," Mimi added in between customers.

Bill looked around, finally noticing Sabrina's absence. "Where did she go? I thought she would be with you guys." It was hard to miss the look that was shot between his three friends, no matter how discreet they  _ thought _ they were being. 

"She decided to work a few hours this morning," Jake offered, suddenly very interested in helping Stanley move a few wooden crates of the aforementioned vegetables.

"Why?" 

Both Stanley and Jake shot him a pointed look before they continued their tasks.

Oh. It was because of him. He sighed heavily, turning to leave. "I'm taking my lunch break, I'll be back in a few."

"Where are you going?" Jake asked.

"To get Sabrina," Bill threw over his shoulder.

Mimi waited until Bill was gone before she turned to Stanley and Jake and spoke low enough that only they could hear her. "Think they'll finally kiss and make-up?"

Jake laughed, handing a crate of peppers to Stanley. "Make-up? Maybe. Kiss? No. Not yet anyway."

"Yeah," Stanley agreed. "Pretty sure we're gonna have to lock their stubborn asses in a room for that to happen."

* * *

Sabrina sat at Jake's desk inside his office at the police department. She had a stack of reports she had already sorted through to her left, a budget report that was already completed in front of her, and a plastic pitcher of homemade apple cider to her right that Mrs. Gaudette, the owner of the apple orchard in town, had brought by on her way to the festival. Sabrina was glad she at least had one of her favorite drinks while she pretended to work until four when she knew Bill's shift ended. She rolled her eyes at herself, disappointed that she had taken to hiding instead of just talking to the man.

She blew a breath from her lips and focused back on the budget report laid out before her, reading it for what was probably the hundredth time when she caught a whiff of something that most definitely wasn't the cinnamon apple mixture beside her. She looked up, her eyes widening in surprise when she found Bill leaning against the door frame holding a small styrofoam bowl covered with tinfoil.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

"Could ask you the same question."

"I'm working," she said shortly.

"And I brought you a bowl of the winning chili from the cook-off. No one stood a chance against Margaret." He held her gaze, walking further into the room. "Do we wanna try the truth now?"

Sabrina sighed, folding her arms on top of the desk, biting her bottom lip and debating on how honest she wanted to be. "Avoiding you since you obviously don't want to be around me if you don't have to be."

"And I came here to get you and bring you back to the festival."

"Why?"

"Sabrina," he started, sitting down in the chair across from her and placing the bowl on the desk. "It's not that I don't want to be around you. Being around you is just hard. We didn't exactly end very well and then I thought you were dead. Seeing you again brought back a lot of old feelings I thought I had worked through and I'm still trying to process all of it. But…that doesn't mean I get to be a dick to you in the process. If it's something you still want, I'd like to try that friend thing."

She smiled at him and his stomach exploded with butterflies.

"I'd like that," Sabrina said earnestly.

"Good," he said, standing to move to the right side of the desk and holding out his hand to her. "Then come back to the festival with me, please."

Sabrina's smile grew, slipping her hand into his and standing. However, her elbow knocked the pitcher on her way up and the container of liquid went crashing to the ground, covering the floor and their legs in the cider. Sabrina cursed under her breath, moving to grab the jug but lost her footing and slipped, falling into Bill's chest. He laughed, his arms closing around her to keep her from falling to the ground and she looked up at him with a crimson blush covering her face. 

"Might wanna watch the knees," he whispered as their eyes locked and breaths stilled.

_ "I can't believe I fell getting out of your truck," Sabrina grumbled. _

_ Bill laughed, supporting her weight with his arm around her waist and guiding her into his apartment. "You act like it's the first time you've done it." _

_ He closed and locked the door then led her to sit on his dark brown couch before he went to get the items he needed to clean her up. _

_ "Yeah, well, I normally don't bring the blood," Sabrina said in disappointment, gazing down at her knee that had a gash with blood flowing from it. She looked over the room and saw the droplets of blood leading from the door to where she sat. "I got blood on your carpet. I'm so sorry!" _

_ "Don't worry about it, I've got peroxide somewhere that will clean it right up," Bill said, emerging from his bedroom with a bottle of antiseptic, a wet washcloth, a few cotton balls, and some bandages. He moved to sit in front of her on the edge of the coffee table and pulled her hurt leg up to rest on his thigh. "At least you're wearing a skirt and didn't mess up your clothes," he told her encouragingly while he gently cleaned her wound with the washcloth. _

_ She grimaced, wincing as he wiped away the blood on her knee and then down her leg. "Why do you put up with my ungraceful ass?" _

_ "Your slight clumsiness is endearing," he responded without missing a beat, laying the washcloth on the table and picking up the antiseptic. "And I love you with all my heart." _

_ "You're just saying that cos I let you take my clothes off," she said jokingly, jerking a little when Bill dabbed her wound with a cotton ball soaked in antiseptic. _

_ "No, I'm not," he replied, flashing her a smile that showcased his dimples before he leaned down to blow away the sting. _

_ She shuddered when his breath ghosted over her skin, a completely different feeling taking over while she watched him place a bandage. When he was done and had the items he had used to take care of her cut put to the side, she leaned forward and reached out to pull him close. _

_ "I love you, too, ya know," she said and pressed her lips to his. _

"Yeah," Sabrina said, breathless. "Wouldn't want you to have to doctor me up."

His arm tightened around her waist, his other hand coming up to push a few stray strands of hair from her face. "I wouldn't mind." His voice was almost a whisper as the distance between them started to close.

"Hey, Sabrina—WHOA!!"

The new voice in the room had them ripping away from each other and turning—red faced—to see Calvin Riley standing just inside the doorway looking back and forth between them.

"I'm not interrupting anything am I?" Calvin asked with an arched brow.

A string of different variations of no were mumbled from the two as they moved further away from each other.

"I just slipped and Bill caught me," Sabrina finally said clearly.

Calvin's eyes drifted down to the puddle of apple cider on the floor. "Oh, damn! You need some help cleaning that up?"

"We got it," Bill said curtly. "What do you want, Riley."

Calvin's features took on a wolfish grin as he moved towards Sabrina, ignoring the perturbed look on Bill's face when he started speaking to her. "I came to see if you wanted to go to the festival with me."

Bill didn't even bother to try and hide the daggers he was glaring at the back of his co-worker's head.

"Sorry, Calvin, I'm already going with Bill."

Bill's face had split into a triumphant grin by the time Calvin turned to him with a scowl on his face.

"Alright," Calvin started, not turning to look at Sabrina again. "I'll just catch up with some of the other guys that are going before their shift this evening."

"You do that," Bill said, watching as Calvin exited the room and then the department. "Asshole." He turned back to Sabrina, who was trying to keep from smiling at his obvious jealousy. "How many times has he asked you out now?"

"I think that was four, maybe five."

"You want me to tell him to back the hell off?"

"No," Sabrina laughed. "I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself. He'll move on to someone else before long."

A silence fell between them, their thoughts returning to what they had been doing prior to Calvin's interruption.

"Sabrina—" Bill finally started.

"We should probably get this cleaned up," she quickly cut him off, moving to pick up the pitcher that had fallen to the ground.

"Uh, yeah, I'll go get some towels and a mop," Bill said, exiting the room.

After cleaning up the spill and replacing their cleaning implements to their rightful places, they headed out of the office and over to Sabrina's desk so she could put away the work she had been busying herself with.

"Well, I'm glad I brought something to change into for the festival," Sabrina said, looking at their still wet clothes. "What about you though? You're still working. Do you need me to go get you something?"

"No, I keep an extra uniform in my locker," Bill told her. "It's easier than having to run all the way home if something happens."

"That's smart," she said, grabbing her bag next to her desk. "Where are you living now anyway? You aren't still in that apartment are you?"

"Uh…no." Bill's hand came up to rub the back of his neck. "I, uh, bought the old Carpenter house on Spruce Lane a while back."

"Oh," Sabrina said, her eyes blinking with surprise. She knew exactly which house he was talking about and she wasn't exactly sure how to react.

"Well, we should get changed and head out," Bill said quickly, heading towards the hallway leading to the locker room. "I'll meet you out front when you're done and we'll walk back together."

"Yeah, OK," she said quietly, watching his retreating form.

* * *

The fall festival had been a huge hit with full crowds from the time it opened until the time it closed each day. Each merchant stall was left with barely any product and a few—including the Richmond booth—had nothing left by the end of the day on Sunday. 

As the last lingering festival goers were heading to the cars, the cleanup had begun. Stanley and Mimi made trips back and forth to his truck to load up the wooden crates they had used to cart in their produce and baked goods. Sabrina took down the Jericho Panthers banners and signs that had listed the prices while the volunteer high school students put away the folding tables.

Bill saw her from across the gym as he entered. He and a few of the night shift deputies had been assigned the task of making sure the school was secure after the clean up was finished. The smile that tugged at his lips while he made his way over to her was involuntary; he wasn't about to admit to himself how cute she looked struggling to fold one of the longer gold-trimmed maroon banners by herself.

"You want some help?" he asked.

She looked up with a smile, and he shoved down the butterflies threatening to erupt in his stomach.

"That would be great," she said appreciatively.

Together they finished taking down the signage and folded the school's decorative material, chatting and laughing the whole time. Conversation flowed easily between them both, and the sense of familiarity made them realize how much they had missed it until that moment.

"Thanks, Bill," Sabrina said, placing the lid on the plastic storage bin they had packed the neatly folded school banners away in. She couldn't seem to wipe the smile from her face.

"You're welcome. Even with as cute as you looked fighting with that thing, I couldn't let you suffer." The admission rolled off his tongue before he could stop himself, but the slight blush that colored her cheeks after he spoke banished any sort of regret that would’ve followed. He hated that he still had work to do. "I should get going, though. There's still a lot to finish before I'm done for the night. I'll see you at work in the morning, Sabi."

"Uh, yeah," Sabrina started. "See you tomorrow."

The grin on her face grew impossibly wider as she watched him walk away.

_ Sabi…  _ She hadn’t heard him call her that in a long time...


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Halloween, snow storm, and power outtages.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: smut!

Before any of the Jericho residents knew it, Halloween was upon the town. Invites to different events and celebrations in honor of the holiday were popping up everywhere, and even the police department was abuzz with excitement as the day finally rolled around.

Sabrina ignored the excited chatter from the day shift deputies coming in from the end of their work day as they discussed their plans for the evening and walked into Jake's office. The sheriff was standing at his desk putting his signature to a few reports and he looked up with a smile when she entered.

"Hey, Jake. If you don't need anything else from me, I'm heading out,” she told him.

"You're good to go," he said. "I'll file these when I'm done. Are you going to Bailey's tonight?"

Sabrina grimaced at the question. "No, I'm staying in tonight. I've not really been into Halloween for a while now."

"Why?!" Jake asked, shocked at her answer.

"You know why," she replied with a look of exasperation.

"Oh." Realization dawned on him. "You should still come out. Mary and Eric really want you to be there and I think you'll have fun."

Thankfully, she didn't have to respond because just as the words were leaving his mouth, Major Beck came strolling into the room with a large triumphant grin on his face, holding up a sheet of paper with a list of names printed on it.

"I have good news!" Beck exclaimed. "This is a list of twenty Jericho citizens that will be coming home tomorrow and Sunday, safe and sound!"

"What?!" Jake and Sabrina both said excitedly.

Jake was next to him in a matter of seconds and taking the list from him, knowing Sabrina was watching him hopefully. His face fell slightly when he didn't read her father's name on the list and he looked up at her with apologetic eyes.

"I'm sorry, Brina. He's not on here," Jake said quietly.

Sabrina forced a smile, trying to hide her disappointment. "It's OK. It's still fantastic news!"

"Hey," Beck said comfortingly, placing a hand on her shoulder. "It doesn't mean we won't find him. I still have another fifteen names on my list that we are trying to track down, and we  _ will _ find all of them."

"That may be so," Sabrina said. "But the further you get down that list, the less chance there is of finding them alive."

Beck sighed heavily. He knew she was right. "I promise I'll do everything I can to bring your father home to you."

"I know, and I appreciate it."

* * *

"I can't believe I let you talk me into this," Sabrina grumbled, pulling her coat closed around her while she walked with Stanley and Mimi down the sidewalk towards the entrance to Bailey's.

"It's a party," Stanley said, laughing and opening the door to the bar for the two women with him. "You're going to have fun!"

"If you say so," Sabrina said, following Mimi inside.

Mary and Eric had pulled every Halloween decoration the bar still had in storage to decorate for the night. Small ghosts, bats, and skeletons were strategically hung throughout the ceiling, the tables were adorned with centerpieces of purple and black silk roses, jack-o'-lanterns were placed in the windows, and a sparkly and spooky themed length of garland lined the bar where the couple was serving drinks to their patrons, some dressed up in hand-made costumes and others just in casual clothes.

Sabrina had been one of those who had chosen not to dress up for the occasion, and was glad when her vampire dressed cousin dragged his matching fiancé off when he spotted one of his friends. She made her way to an empty barstool near where Mary was currently pouring a round of shots for a group of customers.

"Nice turn out," Sabrina said, raising her voice so Mary could hear her over the music.

"Yeah!" Mary said, glancing up briefly at her. "It helps that we are finally fully stocked with booze again. Dale and Beck have done wonders with keeping food and drink coming in." She passed the tray of tiny filled glasses to the waiting patron after taking their money and turned to face Sabrina. "I'm really glad you made it tonight. You don't look happy to be here, though. What's wrong?"

Sabrina debated for a moment, but finally decided to tell the woman at least an abridged version of what was going on in her head. "It's nothing against your bar, or anything like that. I'm just thinking of other places I'd like to be."

"Other  _ places _ you would like to be or a certain  _ person _ you would like to be there with?" Mary asked knowingly.

Sabrina furrowed her brow and Mary discreetly motioned for her to turn around. She did, and found Jake and Emily walking towards her…with Bill in tow.

Dammit Jake.

Sabrina slid down from her stool to greet Jake and Emily with hugs and Bill with a smile that he returned as their gazes met.

_ Sabrina and Emily followed behind Bill and Jake, the two men maneuvering a queen size mattress up a flight of stairs and to the front door of Bill's new apartment. Each of the young women carried a cardboard box full of Bill's stuff, trying not to laugh at their boyfriends while the two men argued on the easiest way to get their job done. Finally, the two managed to get the piece of furniture inside and started on their way to the bedroom. _

_ "Seriously, who moves on Halloween?!" Jake griped as they hefted the mattress. _

_ "I got the keys a day early and wanted to get it done!" Bill bit back. "You didn't have to help." _

_ "The two blondes behind us said differently." _

_ Sabrina and Emily laughed, setting down the boxes in the living room. Once the men were inside the bedroom placing Bill's furniture, Emily hurriedly closed the distance between her and Sabrina in order to have a whispered conversation. _

_ "I snagged one from Jake's dresser earlier if you're still sure," Emily said, reaching in her pocket and pulling out a small object that was encircled by her fist. _

_ "Yeah, I'm sure," Sabrina confirmed, taking it from her friend and putting it in her own pocket. "Thanks, Em." _

_ "You're welcome," Emily said with a grin. "Have you said anything to him yet?" _

_ "Not yet." _

_ "We're finally done!" Jake exclaimed in triumph when he and Bill entered the living room again. He came over to put his arm around Emily's shoulders. "We should probably get going. We're gonna be late." He turned to look between Bill and Sabrina. "You guys coming to the party tonight?" _

_ "Nah," Bill said. "Sabi said she just wanted to stay in and watch scary movies, so that's what we're gonna do." _

_ "Aww! Come on guys!" Jake pleaded. "I flew all the way from from Florida this morning just to go to this party! You guys have to go!" _

_ "Jake!" Emily scolded, elbowing him in the ribs. "You leave them alone! If they want to spend the night with just the two of them, then that's what they should do!"  _

_ "Um, OK," Jake responded, gazing questioningly at the girl beside him. _

_ Without much more said, the couples said their farewells and Jake and Emily were gone. Bill had Sabrina wrapped in his arms the moment the door clicked shut. _

_ "Thank you for your help today," he said, kissing her softly.  _

_ "Nowhere else I'd rather be." She gently pulled away and took his hand, leading him towards the bedroom. "Now let's go get the TV and VCR set up so we can watch our movie." _

_ Once in his room, Sabrina helped him move his TV to a small stand and then moved aside to let him hook up the electronics. She watched him sitting with her legs stretched out in front of her in the middle of his bed, suddenly nervous for the topic she planned on bringing up when he was done. Fidgeting with her hands, she tried to compose herself, but her anxiety was still written all over her face when he was done and moved to sit next to her. _

_ "What's wrong, babe?" he asked, reaching out to cover both her hands with one of his.  _

_ The genuine concern and love in his amber eyes managed to wash most of her nerves away and a smile pulled at her features. "Nothing. But I have a surprise for you." _

_ "Oh?" he asked, grinning and quirking an eyebrow. _

_ "Close your eyes and hold out your hand." _

_ Questions formed in his eyes for a moment before he lifted his hand from hers and did as she requested. _

_ She took a deep breath and reached into her pocket to pull out the object that she had gotten from Emily. Carefully, she placed it in his hand and closed his fingers over it. She watched the expression on his face change, his fingers feeling over the tiny foil package, trying to figure out what it was. His eyes snapped open and his mouth fell agape when he realized that what he was holding was a condom. He opened his eyes to look at it for a second before bringing his gaze to hers. _

_ "Trick or Treat," she said, her smile now holding an impish quality. _

_ "Are you sure?" he asked. _

_ "Yes. I'm ready, Bill." _

_ A grin finally came back to his lips as he leaned forward to slant his mouth over hers. _

Bill forcefully cleared his throat, tearing his eyes away from Sabrina to focus on Mary and walk up to the bar. "Can I get a whiskey, please?"

"Sure thing!" Mary said and quickly went to fetch his drink.

Sabrina watched him for a second. He was very obviously avoiding looking at her when he turned to walk away. She accidentally bumped Jake in her haste to get away herself, and his eyes stayed on her while she made her way out the exit. Anger flashed in his eyes and he turned back to his undersheriff.

"Bill!" Jake admonished, punching his friend in the shoulder. "Go after her you idiot!"

"No," Bill said sternly as Mary sat his drink in front of him. He thanked her, paying her and placing a five in the tip jar.

"And why the hell not?!" Jake demanded.

"Jake," Emily said in warning.

Bill finally rounded on him. "It really isn't any of your business, Jake!"

Not giving the other man a chance to respond, Bill turned and navigated through the crowd. Truth be told, he didn't know how to answer Jake's question. There was nothing he wanted more than to go after her. 

So what was holding him back?

* * *

Thanksgiving and Christmas came and went in a blur. Each holiday had been packed with returning to traditions and enjoying the time with family and friends. However, they also brought intensely cold temperatures that Sabrina had grown unaccustomed to. 

A few days after Christmas she showed up to work an hour early as bundled up as she could with long underwear under her long sleeves and pants. She also was wearing one of Stanley’s winter coats with her jacket, along with a scarf and knit hat. Jake looked up at her from his desk when she entered his office and a peal of laughter spilled from his mouth.

"You look like you're going to the Arctic!" he exclaimed, trying to catch his breath.

"Shut up, Green! It's fucking cold!" she grumbled, hanging her coats and hat on the rack in the corner of his office. "I'm glad to be back home—I am—but damn if I don't miss California winters."

"You and me both," Jake agreed, watching her come to sit in a chair in front of his desk. "So, why are you here so early?"

"Needed to ask if I could leave a little early today."

"Why?"

"I have some things I need to take care of."

Jake narrowed his eyes at his friend and she rolled hers.

"I have an appointment at the clinic," she said.

"Why? Everything OK?"

"You're my boss; you can't ask that."

"Well, you're not clocked in at the moment. Right now I'm just your best friend."

"Fine!" Sabrina said in exasperation. "I need to get my birth control! There! Happy you asked?"

Jake started to laugh, but the sound was quickly cut off when his eyes drifted up and caught sight of the new occupant in the room. Sabrina curiously followed his gaze and felt her stomach drop to the ground.

"Here's the information you wanted, Jake," Bill groused, crossing the room, pointedly  _ not _ looking at Sabrina and laying a file on the desk. "I'm heading out on patrol with Jimmy now."

The undersheriff turned and exited the room without another word. Slowly, Sabrina turned back to Jake.

"Any chance he  _ doesn't _ think I'm sleeping with someone?" Sabrina asked, already knowing the sheriff's answer when his eyes narrowed at her again.

"Here's a crazy idea!" Jake said, a hint of impatience in his tone. "Why don't the two of you talk your crap out?! I  _ would _ say you’re acting like a couple of teenagers who can't figure themselves out, but you two actually  _ did _ have things figured out then!"

"Jake—"

"No! The two of you have been dancing around each other for months now! I  _ know _ you still love him, and it's obvious he still has feelings for you, too! I  _ thought _ after the festival you guys were getting on track, but then the Halloween weirdness happened and you’re right back to square one! Does he even know about Colby College? Does he know that you were trying to get back to Jericho even before the bombs?"

"No," she said quietly. 

"Well then maybe you should tell him." A tense moment of silence passed between them before Jake spoke again, his voice softer this time. "If you're leaving early today you should probably get started."

* * *

It was none of Bill's business. It didn't matter why she needed that medicine. He couldn't blame her if she was seeing someone. He hadn't exactly put himself in the running since Halloween. Maybe he should just talk to her. Or maybe he should just let it go. It wasn't any of his concern about what she did with her personal life—not anymore at least. So why did he have this jealousy for someone he wasn't even sure existed rolling through his system?

"You gonna tell me why you're being such a grump today?" Jimmy asked from the driver's seat of his patrol car.

"I'm not being a grump," Bill grumbled, his eyes trained on his window.

"Right," Jimmy said sarcastically. "That's why your face looks like you ate a lemon and you've barely said ten words to me all day."

Bill sighed. He didn't want to have this conversation. "I accidentally overheard something this morning that I wish I hadn't."

"Well, if you accidentally heard it, then are you sure you got the whole story? Maybe it's not as bad as you think. If you just talk to Sabrina I'm sure she wouldn't have a problem giving you the whole story."

Bill turned to his friend with a furrowed brow. "I never said it had anything to do with her."

"She's the only one that gets you worked up like this," Jimmy shrugged. "And considering you're both still sneaking pining glances at each other when you think no one is looking, I'm gonna go out on a limb and say you two still haven't sat down and talked."

"Uh, no," Bill admitted. "We haven't. Not really."

"That's what I thought. I think it may be time you fixed that."

* * *

Jimmy was right. It was high time they dealt with whatever was or wasn't between them so they could move forward accordingly. Bill came in from the end of his shift determined to locate Sabrina. He went straight to her desk and he huffed when she wasn't there. He looked around the department, but still found no trace for her. Why he didn't just ask someone was beyond him. Just plain stubbornness, he guessed.

Feeling a little defeated, he slumped into the chair behind his desk to finish his end of shift paperwork. Maybe she would be back soon.

He had been working for maybe ten minutes when Calvin came strolling in with his partner, Derek. The two men beelined for the coffee station, laughing obnoxiously and making Bill grind his teeth. Derek wasn't so bad, but Calvin seemed to just get under his skin lately just by being in the same room. He tried to ignore their conversation and focus on what he was doing, but they were just so loud.

"I can't believe you finally got her to go out with you," Derek said in astonishment.

"Oh ye of little faith!" Calvin laughed. "All it took was a little timing and perseverance. Once she realized her ex was never going to make up his mind, I was there to pick up the pieces!"

Bill's stomach twisted. There was no way he was talking about Sabrina, was there? She couldn't stand Calvin either, right?

"And let me tell ya," Calvin continued, his tone turning suggestive. "Blondes definitely have more fun! The things she let me do to her in her cousin's barn!"

Anger flooded through Bill. He wanted to punch the man, wanted to ask Sabrina what the hell she was thinking, because who else could he be talking about?

* * *

Sabrina's appointment at the clinic had taken much longer than she anticipated and she rushed out of the building at a quarter to seven on her way to Dale's store. It was her night to make dinner and she had no clue what she was going to do this late in the day. She parked on the side of the building, cursing herself for forgetting Stanley's winter coat in Jake's office when the cold easily slipped in through her jacket. At least the truck Stanley had fixed up for her had heat and she only had to brave the cold from her vehicle to the inside of the store.

"Hey, Sabrina!" Dale greeted from behind the register when she entered.

"Hey, Dale! Have you got anything in that's quick, easy, and big enough for three people?" she asked, grabbing a small shopping basket from a stack by the door.

"Got some of those frozen lasagnas in the reach-in freezer. Not sure how many are left though. They've been flying off the shelf tonight with the milk and bread. People gotta get ready I guess."

Sabrina raised a speculative brow. "Ready for what?"

"Uh…the huge snow storm that's supposed to hit us tonight."

"What?! I thought it was still a few days away!!"

"Changed this morning," Dale informed her. "Winds changed last night and sped things up. Supposed to be whiteout conditions."

"Son of a bitch!" Sabrina grumbled under her breath. "Thanks for the heads up."

"You got it."

Sabrina made her way around the store. Thankfully the only thing they needed at the house was bread and candles just in case the power went out. After grabbing the items, she went to the freezer Dale had mentioned to hopefully grab dinner for the evening.

She was glad to see that there was one solitary lasagna left in the freezer. However when she reached for it, so did another person. She followed the arm clad in a green Jericho Police Department issued coat to find Bill looking at her in surprise, but his expression quickly turned to one of disdain. He definitely wasn't happy to see her.

"Bill! Hey!" she said, hoping the conversation he had walked in on earlier that day was forgotten.

It wasn't.

"Hi," he practically growled, letting go of the frozen item and turning to walk away.

"Bill, wait!" she pleaded.

He stilled, and she could tell he was debating on whether or not to turn around. He finally did, but the anger in his golden eyes was more than evident.

"What?" he snapped.

She faltered for a second, unsure how to broach his ire. "About earlier…I just—"

"I don't really care," he cut her off. "It's none of my business who you're fucking. You've made that clear."

" _ I've _ made that clear?!" she questioned, her voice going a bit higher. "You're the one who's been pushing me away, Bill! We're supposed to be friends, yet you can barely stand to be in the same room with me!"

"With good reason apparently.” His voice was full of more venom toward her than she had ever heard from him. 

"Dammit, Bill! This isn't us! We don't talk to each other like this!"

"Until you left me high and dry!"

Their voices were getting louder, causing the other customers in the store to stare.

"In case you haven't noticed, I'M BACK!" Sabrina half-shouted.

"Yeah, thirteen years too late!" Bill yelled.

"Guys!" Dale's warning voice cut in and they both whipped their heads around to see the young man glaring at them. "I can hear you from the front of the store! Cool it, or I'm gonna have to ask you  _ both _ to leave!"

"I'm done here, anyway," Bill said, turning to walk away. "Have fun with Calvin, but don't come crying to me when he fucks you over."

" _ Calvin _ ?!" Sabrina asked, thoroughly confused. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Don't treat me like I'm stupid, Sabrina," Bill growled and disappeared around the corner.

Sabrina stared after him, trying to figure out how Calvin had got brought into their argument. Surely he didn't think she would be with  _ him _ . He knew she wasn't interested in that man, didn't he?

* * *

Sabrina grumbled under her breath, stomping into the kitchen of the Richmond farm house from the back door and slamming it a little harder than she intended to in her irritated state. The noise brought Mimi in from the living room and her face instantly twisted with concern when she saw the look on the other woman's face.

"Brina what's wrong?" Mimi asked.

"Men are idiots," Sabrina spat, putting away the bread in the cabinet and the candles in a drawer.

"Something happened with Bill," Mimi assumed, taking a seat at the kitchen table.

Sabrina started to hastily remove her jacket, scarf, and hat and started to unload on her cousin's fiancé. "He walked in at completely the wrong time this morning when I was talking to Jake and overheard me say that I had an appointment to get my birth control today, and now he's somehow twisted it in his head that that means I'm screwing Calvin Riley! Of all the damn men in Jericho,  _ that's _ the asshole he chooses! I mean, come the hell on! He  _ knows _ I'm not interested in that prick!"

"Did you tell him that wasn't the case?"

"He didn't give me the chance!" Sabrina went to grab a pan and opened the lasagna box, setting the frozen dinner on the baking sheet.

"Brina, sit down with me," Mimi coaxed.

Sabrina begrudgingly did what was requested and felt the defeat slump her shoulders looking into Mimi's concerned face. "I don't know what to do, Mimi. He hates me. I mean, I get it, but…I wish he would just give me a chance to explain things. I wish I would have tried before this crap happened, too."

"Then go talk to him," Mimi said encouragingly, reaching out to cover Sabrina's hands with hers. "I already have one of those lasagnas in the oven and it's just about done. Why don't you take that one to Bill's and talk to him. I'll put that other one in for Stanley and me."

"He doesn't want to talk to me," Sabrina said sadly. "He's done."

"If that was true he wouldn't be so upset because he thinks you're with someone else."

Stanley walked in as Sabrina was mulling over Mimi's words. He observed the look on the two women's faces and his brows raised. "Everything OK?" he asked cautiously.

"Yes," Mimi said quickly, looking up at him. "Brina was just about to leave to take Bill some dinner."

"But the storm—" he started.

"Won't get bad until later tonight." Mimi turned a supportive gaze back to Sabrina. "If you leave in the next few minutes you should have plenty of time to talk things out."

"You're right," Sabrina finally said, a hopeful smile pulling at her lips. "I'll go get changed real quick and go."

"I'll have the lasagna packed up by the time you're done," Mimi promised.

"Thanks, Mimi," Sabrina said, standing and hugging the woman before she disappeared from the kitchen and up the stairs.

Stanley watched her until she was out of sight and then turned to his fiancé. "You know that storm is supposed to be here in full force within the hour. You listened to the weather report with me right before she got home. What are you thinking? You know she'll get stuck at Bill's for the night."

A mischievous grin grew across Mimi's face. "Well, you did say we would have to lock them in a room. Mother nature might just do that for us tonight."

Stanley laughed and smiled brightly as he leaned down to kiss her. "I knew asking you to marry me was a good idea!"

* * *

Bill felt terrible. He knew he shouldn't have spoken that way to her. He had been raised better than that. Jealousy was an ugly thing, however. That much he knew, and there was no denying it. He was jealous and mad at himself. It was his own fault that she had moved on. Why couldn't he, too, just move on from the past and jump on the opportunity he had had the chance to take? Well, part of him knew. In his head she was still a flight risk and letting her back in his heart could get it broken again. He barely lived through the last time.

With his uniform in his hamper, he changed into flannel sleep pants and a t-shirt and then made his way to his kitchen to scour his pantry and refrigerator for something to eat. His bullheadedness had also caused him to leave the store without dinner and now he was kicking himself for it. That's when he heard a knock at his front door and he raised an eyebrow in suspicion. Who the hell was that?

He closed the door to his pantry and went to the window facing his driveway, moving the sheer curtain to the side to peer out. His stomach did a flip flop when he saw Sabrina's vehicle in front of his house. He didn't want to deal with this. She was no doubt still mad about their earlier altercation and he really didn't want to fight again. Maybe if he ignored the knock she would go away.

"Bill!" Sabrina called from the other side of the door. "I know you're in there! I saw you look out the window! Please let me in. I just want to talk. I have food, and it's really freaking cold out here!"

He sighed loudly and moved through the kitchen and to the connecting living room to open the door. She smiled at him when his eyes met hers and held up a lasagna covered with tinfoil.

_ Of all the luck in the world, Bill felt like his was the worst at the moment. It was his twentieth birthday, Sabrina was in class all day, and he had bronchitis. He had been wrapped up in a blanket on his couch most of the day, completely miserable and barely paying attention to the TV droning on. He was thankful for the medicines, tissues, and other things he would need that Sabrina set up on his coffee table before she had left the night before, but he really just wanted her. _

_ He groaned loudly when he heard a knock at the door and dragged himself off the couch to answer. Despite feeling like death warmed over, a smile broke out over his face when he looked into sky blue eyes belonging to the woman standing on the other side of his door with to-go containers of soup from his favorite restaurant and a small bright yellow cake box. _

_ "Happy birthday, baby!" Sabrina cooed, keeping her voice low because she could see in his eyes he still had a headache. _

_ "It is now," he said, grinning as he stood aside to let her in. He closed the door and watched her as she brought the food to his tiny kitchen and set it down on the counter. "I thought you had class all day?" _

_ "I went in this morning and got all my professors to give me my assignments so I could get back here and take care of you," she explained, proceeding to put his soup in a bowl for him. "Now back to that couch mister! You need to rest!" _

_ "I love you," Bill said. Just having her there made the day so much better. Maybe his luck was better than he thought. _

_ She stopped what she was doing for just a moment to look at him with the smile that still made butterflies pop up in his stomach. "I love you, too." _

"Uh, come on in," Bill said, stepping aside.

He heard her small gasp when she walked inside, her eyes traveling over the interior of the house that was supposed to have been theirs together. When the door clicked close, she turned back to him with a forced smile, nostalgia swimming in her features that she hurriedly pushed down.

"I like what you've done with the place," she said, not entirely meeting his gaze.

"Yeah, thanks. Come on, you can put that in here," he said quickly, walking past her to lead the way into the kitchen.

She followed, placing the covered lasagna on the counter he indicated. An uncomfortable silence fell between them while she took her jacket and scarf off and they stood in the middle of the room, both avoiding looking directly at the other yet still keeping one another in their sight. Neither really knew what to do or where to start. There were a million things they wanted to say running through their minds, and neither of them appeared to be able to voice any of them. Finally, Bill sighed and moved to take two plates out of a cabinet.

"Would you like to eat dinner with me?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'd like that."

The meal started in silence as they sat down at Bill's small kitchen table, but small talk slowly began to emerge. They cautiously discussed work and what they had done during the holidays. When they were both finished eating, they cleaned up together, rinsing and drying their dishes and wrapping the leftover food.

"Was this the same lasagna from earlier?" Bill asked, placing the lasagna in his refrigerator and turning to her.

"Not the exact one," Sabrina said, standing with her backside against the dishwasher. "Mimi already had one in the oven when I got home."

"Well, thanks. I was wondering what I was gonna make."

"So…are you glad I came then?" Sabrina asked hopefully.

He shrugged, moving to lean against the counter next to the refrigerator and folding his arms over his chest. "How are Stanley and Mimi doing? They set a date yet?"

"They're fine, but no they haven't." Sabrina took a breath before she started her next sentence. "Bill… about earlier…what you walked in on in Jake's office—"

"Sabrina, don't," he warned.

"Would you just let me explain myself? It's not what you think!"

"I don't really care what it is," he spat. Anger flashed in his eyes again while striding out of the kitchen to the living room.

"Dammit, Bill!" Sabrina exclaimed, her own ire showing as she followed after him. "Stop walking away and talk to me!"

"There's nothing to talk about," he snapped, rounding on her. "I really don't wanna hear about who you're fucking!"

Her hands clenched into fists at her sides and she stared defiantly up at him. "I'm not fucking anyone you asshole! Especially not Calvin Riley!"

"I heard him talking today about you and him in Stanley's barn!"

"Did he mention my damn name?! Or did you just assume?! Because the  _ only _ person I ever let do anything to me in Stanley's barn was  _ you _ !"

"So my bad, I got the person wrong—" he started sarcastically.

"YOU GOT ALL OF IT WRONG! GOD DAMMIT, BILL!" Sabrina turned to stomp off back to the kitchen. "This was a waste of fucking time!" She grabbed her jacket and hat, not even bothering to put them on before she stormed out the front door.

Bill saw the near solid sheet of falling snow when she opened the door, some of the snowflakes rushing in the door before she slammed it. The storm! He had forgotten about it! He couldn't let her drive home in those conditions!

"Sabrina!" he called as he threw the door open.

The ground and roads were already covered and wind was whipping the white fluff falling heavily from the sky wildly about. He could barely make out what was three feet in front of him after he got off his porch. The lamp hanging at its edge gave him just enough light to see her silhouette right as she slipped and fell to the ground. Bill cursed under his breath and, after hurrying over and arguing with her about it, helped her back to her feet. Her clothes were already wet from falling and her jacket and scarf were nowhere to be found, swallowed by the copious amounts of snow being dumped from the sky.

"You can't drive in this," Bill said, stating the obvious. "You have to stay."

"I am  _ not _ staying here!" she said, her arms wrapped around herself and already starting to shiver.

"How far do you think you are going to get in this storm?!" His tone was harsher than he intended, but they were both covered in cold, wet, snow and it wasn't doing much for his patience. "You won't even be able to see past the hood of your truck!"

"I don't care!"

"Sabrina!" He growled through gritted teeth. "I'm not letting you risk your life driving in this! Either you walk back into the house or I carry you in there! Your choice!"

She finally begrudgingly agreed and let him lead her back into the house. A deafening silence hung over their heads as he shut the door and turned to her.

"There's a phone in the kitchen. Go call Stanley and tell him you're stuck here. I'm going to change into dry clothes and get you something to wear, too," Bill said and stomped away up the stairs.

Sabrina was still so cold she could feel her teeth chattering on her way to the phone hanging on the wall by the kitchen window. She sighed, reaching for the receiver and dialing Stanley's number.

"Hello?" he answered after only two rings.

"Hey, Stanley, it's Brina. I'm stuck at Bill's."

"Yeah, I had a feeling you would be. You guys OK?"

"We may kill each other before the night's over," she said flatly.

Stanley laughed loudly before he replied, "At least you're finally talking!"

"We're yelling at each other!"

"For now. Tell Bill I'll be by in the morning after the plows and salt trucks go through to help dig your truck out."

"You got it."

With a farewell to her cousin, she hung up the phone and turned to find Bill coming into the kitchen carrying a dark blue long sleeve t-shirt of his with matching flannel sleep pants.

"I'm assuming you remember where the downstairs bathroom is," he said, handing her the clothing.

She nodded, accepting the shirt and pants just as the electricity went out, plunging them into darkness.

* * *

Sabrina cursed herself for being so stubborn as she peeled the wet clothes from her body in Bill's downstairs bathroom by candlelight. She quickly folded the clothes, stashing her underwear and bra in-between her jeans and sweater and putting on the clothes Bill had gotten for her. Bill's scent lingered in the fabric, but she ignored it, wanting to escape the chill that had settled on her skin. She grabbed the candle and exited the room, wet clothes in tow.

She reached the end of the hallway and carefully pushed aside the blanket Bill had hung in the doorway that separated it from the living room. Bill's living room was good-sized, and while the blanket blocking off the hallway would help, the connecting kitchen and open staircase leading to the bedrooms upstairs wouldn't keep a lot of heat from the fire he was currently building in the fireplace. 

He didn't acknowledge her when she entered the room, but she noticed he had already dragged a mattress from one of the bedrooms and placed it at a safe distance in front of the fireplace with a stack of four quilts and a couple pillows on its surface. Damn, how long was she in the bathroom? She glanced around the room, seeing the couch and loveseat placed in a half circle against the back wall and went to get one of the quilts.

"I'll sleep on the couch," she offered. She really didn't want to fight anymore and figured just going straight to sleep was their safest option.

Bill finally turned, fire poker in hand to look at her and paused for a second.

_ Bill rolled over in his bed half awake, his arm stretching out in search of Sabrina. She had gotten in to Lawrence to visit him while he was at the police academy the night before. His eyes snapped open when he didn't find her. _

_ Where did she go? _

_ A second later his brain registered the delicious aroma of coffee and bacon coming from his kitchen. A smile lit up his face, hopping out of bed and pulling on a pair of gray sweatpants to make his way to the kitchen. There she was, humming to herself and wearing one of his t-shirts while she placed cooked bacon on a plate. He watched her fondly while she turned the stove off and removed a pan from the hot eye. He couldn't wait until he hopefully got to wake up with her every morning, thankful that he already had her father's blessing to take the steps to accomplish that goal. _

_ She caught a glimpse of him then, a grin lighting up her eyes when she crossed over to him. "Good morning," she said, slipping her arms around his shoulders. _

_ His mouth was on hers in an instant, his hands sneaking under the shirt she wore to caress her sides and back, smiling into their kiss when she sighed happily at his touch. "Have I ever told you what seeing you in my shirt does for me?" he asked, moving his lips to the sensitive skin on her neck. _

_ "Mmmm… you may have mentioned it once or twice," she said, almost breathless as he nipped at her pulse point. _

Bill had to force his attention back to the fire, reminding himself that he was upset with her. He was going to need to remember that if he was going to make it through this night. "The couch will be too cold," he mumbled. "We'll have to share the mattress. ...Sorry."

Sabrina blinked down at the queen size mattress lying on the floor. This wasn't exactly how she imagined sharing a bed with him again would be. Nonetheless, she was sure with the stint of power loss Jericho had had during the winter after the bombs he would have figured out how to stay warm on the coldest night, and the chill was definitely starting to set in inside the house now. Or maybe that was just the cold shoulder they were giving each other.

While he finished up with the fire, she busied herself with unfolding the quilts he had laid out, placing them over the mattress. Once that was done, there was nothing left to do but crawl under the blankets as close to one edge as she could get.

Bill had waited until he heard her get into bed before he finally decided the roaring fire no longer needed his attention. He slipped under the blankets with his back facing her, making sure that they were separated with as much space as possible.

During the next couple of hours a smothering silence settled between them while the wind and snow raged outside, steadily lowering the temperature inside the house. It caused Sabrina to shiver no matter how hard she fought it.

"Is there anyway you could lie still?!" Bill snapped, his irritation fueled question shattering through the quiet so suddenly Sabrina couldn't help but jump.

"I'm sorry my body is reacting to it being negative six in here!" Sabrina threw back, venom tainting her words.

Bill rolled his eyes and scoffed. "It's not  _ that _ damn cold in here. Just deal with it."

Sabrina growled, throwing the blankets off of herself and jumping up from the mattress. She marched to the front door and angrily snatched his police coat off a hook next to it, ignoring the feel of his eyes on her. She turned and stalked over to the couch, throwing the coat over the top half of her body.

"What are you doing?" Bill asked, his patience paper-thin. "It's going to be even colder over there. I already told you that."

"Staying away from you like you obviously want."

It wasn't the words themselves that nearly split his chest open—it was the waver in her voice on the last three words, a tremble he  _ knew _ only showed itself when she was fighting back tears. His heart clenched so tight, he almost couldn't breathe.

"Sabrina, I'm sorry," he said sincerely. "I don't want you to stay away from me. Please, come lay back down."

"No."

And just like that, her stubbornness brought back his annoyance. He still couldn't let her freeze though. "Don't make me carry you over here!"

"Carry me then," she dared, any possible tears sufficiently shoved away as she turned her back to him.

Bill grit his teeth, pushed himself up to his feet and crossed the room to her. In one swift and fluid movement he pulled his coat from her, tossing it to the side and scooped her up bridal style in his arms.

"BILL!!!" Sabrina screeched, wiggling against his strong hold.

"I told you I'd do it," he stated simply, carrying her back to the bed.

Despite her constant struggle to wrench from his hold, Bill managed to gently deposit her on the side she had been lying on and then sat down next to her, looking down at where she scowled up at him from her pillow. She pulled her elbows underneath her, bracing herself to spring up, but he moved quicker and was hovering over her with his hands braced on either side of her in an instant.

"Move!" she demanded, glowering at him as she started trying to wiggle out of his hold again.

"Dammit, Sabrina! Stop! I'm trying to keep you from freezing your ass off!"

"Make me!"

His body moved faster than his mind could comprehend and in the next second his mouth was on hers, lips molding together perfectly as they parted, tongues teasing. She responded just as quick, her hands coming up to thread into his hair as he guided her back to the mattress. He braced himself on one elbow, deepening the kiss and turning it hungry when his other hand slipped under her shirt. Her back arched into him and she moaned into his mouth when his hand found her breast, palming the ample swell before he tweaked and rolled her nipple to a taut bud. 

She was already writhing beneath him, hands grasping at his shoulders by the time he switched to pay her other breast the same attention as the other.

"Bill," she panted, his lips moving to her neck, nipping and sucking at the sensitive skin. Heat was pooling between her legs and she could feel his prominent erection pressing into her thigh. Her hips bucked, silently begging him to move his attention lower on her body. "Bill, please!"

He grinned into her skin, his lips dragging up to her ear and his hand sliding down her stomach and into the pants she wore. His name tumbled from her lips and a groan escaped his as he ran a finger lightly over her folds. She was positively dripping for him and it ignited his blood with a spark he thought he'd never feel again.

"Oh Sabi Baby," he said low and husky in her ear, sending a shudder through her body. He slowly inserted two fingers in her wet channel and coated them in her slick. "Is all this for me?"

"Y-yes! Only for  _ you! _ " she said, her voice turning into a keen when his digits came up to circle her clit.

A guttural growl tumbled from his chest and he quickly removed his hand from her to yank the pants she was wearing down to her knees. "Need you now!"

She kicked her pants the rest of the way off and he turned onto his back to remove his own. He turned on his side the moment he was free of the garment and moved her to do the same with his hand on her hip. Knowing exactly how he wanted her, she raised her leg and wrapped her hand around her calf to hold it in position. His body pressed against her back and a whimper fell from her lips when she felt him rub the head of his cock at her entrance.

"You ready, Sabi baby?" he asked, lowering his lips to suck at her neck.

"God, yes!" she mewled. "Fuck me, Bill!"

He slammed home inside of her, both of them crying out at the connection. Her walls wrapped around him perfectly and he filled her in ways no one else could. He immediately set a grueling pace, his hand gripping the underside of her thigh as he pistoned into her. 

"You feel so fucking good, Sabi!" His mouth kissed, nipped, and sucked every inch of her he could reach, not being able to get enough of how her body felt moving against his or the sounds spilling from her lips.

"Fuck! Bill!" she screamed. "Ah! Ah! Yes! Yes! Just like that! Please don't stop!"

He could feel her starting to squeeze his shaft tighter, and he knew she was close. 

"Come for me," he rasped. 

His fingers dropped to rub her clit in fast circles, sending her over the edge in a crescendo of filth and screams of his name. Her spasming velvet walls gripped his cock tightly and sent him into his own Earth-shattering orgasm, the snap of his hips stuttering as he worked them both through their joined release.

She slowly lowered her leg as he gently pulled out of her and then turned to face him. His lips captured hers in a tender kiss and he pulled the quilts back over them.

"Warm enough now?" he asked with a small smile on his face, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her body close to his.

"Warm  _ and _ sated," she said in contentment, tucking her head under his chin after another slow kiss and snaking her arm around his midsection.

He chuckled softly, letting his fingers lightly trace up and down her back until they both drifted off to sleep.

* * *

The sound of plow and salt trucks driving by the house the next morning woke Sabrina. Despite the loud noise, she had a peaceful smile on her face and turned looking for her bedmate. She sat up quickly when she discovered Bill wasn't lying next to her. The warmth in the room and the kitchen light being on told her that the power had been restored. She noticed her clothes, along with her scarf and jacket, were folded and dry on the floor right next to where she had slept. How long had Bill been awake?

She quickly put on her clothes, placing the ones Bill had given her to wear on the arm of his couch, and started in search of him. It didn't take her long to see him from the window out in the driveway just finishing up shoveling the snow and heading back towards the house. He stopped on the porch to remove his top layers caked with snow and then hurried inside wearing his jeans and long sleeved shirt.

She met him at the door, throwing her arms around his neck and pressing her lips to his the moment he closed it. He instantly went ridgid at her touch and she pulled away confused.

"Bill, what's wrong?" she asked cautiously, a growing dread settling into her stomach when he wouldn't look at her.

"The roads have been treated from here to the farm," he said, turning to go into the kitchen with her following. "And I dug your truck out while I shoveled the driveway. I also started your truck for you, so you're good to go."

"Go?" she asked in astonishment, watching him make coffee to avoid her eyes. "You want me to go? I thought…last night—"

"Was a mistake." He finally turned, seeing the devastation settle on her face at his words. God he wanted to take them back. Wanted to grab her, kiss her, and tell her he never wanted to be without her again. "I shouldn't have let it happen and I'm sorry."

"Bill…" She could hear the sound of her own heart shattering in her voice, thick with the tears she was doing her best to keep from spilling over. "Can we please talk about this? I  _ know  _ you still care for me. I felt it last night and I know you felt it from me!"

"One night doesn't change the fact that you left." Staying calm and strong was the only way he would make it through this conversation, but the tears in her eyes were slicing into him.

"Dammit, Bill! That was thirteen years ago! I accepted a once in a lifetime opportunity—"

"You really think I'm upset that you chased after your dream?" he asked. "Sabrina I was thrilled for you! It's the fact that you just gave up on us to do it! You didn't even want to try to make things work!"

"I asked you to come with me!"

"And you knew I couldn't! I would have had to completely start from scratch in California with a police academy I may or may not have gotten into because I turned down a job offer after I accepted it in Jericho! I had to build a reputation! That didn't mean I wouldn't have been doing everything I could to be with you! But instead of seeing that, you just decided we couldn't be together. You didn't even give us a fighting chance, and coming from the woman I thought I was going to eventually spend my life with, it cut pretty deep. Then I hear nothing from you for thirteen years, and you show up after you're forced to come back and expect me to just forget all of it?! It doesn't work that way, Sabrina!"

"Bill I wasn't forced to come back here!" she said, her voice cracking. "I came back here for you! I had been trying—"

"Sabrina, please," he said, turning away from her to grip the counter with his hands tightly in an attempt to keep him from taking her in his arms. "Just go."

She didn't say another word, but he heard her exit the kitchen to gather her things in the living room and less than a minute later leave through the front door. Tears welled in his own eyes when he heard her truck pull out of his driveway.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Valentine's Day in Jericho!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: angry smut

The rest of December and the month of January marched on slowly with three more snow storms. While the first day of February meant they were that much closer to spring, the days were still cold and the nights even colder.

Sabrina smiled appreciatively at her cousin and thanked him as he set mugs of steaming coffee in front of her and Mimi who were both seated at the kitchen table with a calendar open in front of them.

"What about the first day of spring?" Mimi asked, looking at Stanley, who was taking the seat next to her. 

"I gotta plant the spring oats around that time," he replied. A large grin quickly covered his face. "How about Valentine's Day?!" Sabrina and Mimi both groaned and Stanley frowned. "What's wrong with getting married on the international day of love?!"

"Because it's cliché as hell!" Sabrina exclaimed.

"Not to mention it's two weeks away," Mimi added. "Can you imagine planning a wedding in fourteen days? You haven't even asked your best man to be your best man, Stanley."

"You haven't asked your maid of honor either," Stanley said defensively.

Mimi turned to Sabrina with a grin. "Brina, will you be my maid of honor?"

"Really?!" Sabrina exclaimed excitedly, reaching out to hug the woman beside her. "Oh Mimi, I would love to!"

The two turned back to Stanley, their embrace ending. "Your move," Mimi said.

Stanley started to fidget nervously in his chair, averting his gaze before he spoke. "I don't know if I should."

Sabrina sighed, knowing exactly what was giving her cousin pause. "Stanley, will you just go and ask Bill and get it over with?"

He looked at her in surprise. "You wouldn't be upset? I mean, with what happened in December—"

"I'm fine." It was only a half lie. Truth be told, it still hurt to think of what had happened with Bill a little over a month ago, but she wouldn't let her issues interfere with Stanley and Mimi's wedding. If they could ever choose a day for it. "You and Bill have been best friends since we were kids. It only makes sense for him to be standing next to you when you get married. What happened between us shouldn't cut in on your friendship."

A bright smile encompassed Stanley's face and he stood from the table. "I'll go talk to him now!"

The two women watched as he went to grab his coat and truck keys and disappear out the front door. Mimi turned to her maid of honor once he was gone.

"We still didn't choose a date," she said with a laugh.

"Dammit!"

* * *

Bill hadn’t been expecting his best friend to show up at his house that afternoon. They really hadn’t spoken much since December and he was sure he knew why. Yet, when he heard Stanley’s truck pull into his driveway, he didn’t hesitate to answer the door when his friend knocked, preparing himself for whatever was going to happen.

“Hey, Bill,” Stanley said, somewhat awkwardly. 

“Hey.”

There was a short pause where neither were sure what to say before Bill decided to take the elephant in the room head on.

“So, are you here to take a swing at me?”

Stanley looked appalled at the question for a moment, but ultimately his face settled into acceptance. “No, and while I still think you are acting like a giant douche, I’ve been told that it’s none of my business and shouldn’t let it interfere with our friendship.”

“Fair enough,” Bill said, letting the issue go. “You wanna come in?”

“Probably shouldn’t,” Stanley said. “I realized halfway here that I walked out on Brina and Mimi while we were trying to choose a date for the wedding and that I should probably get back to them soon. I just came here to ask you a question.”

“OK?”

“You wanna be my best man, Bill?”

“I’d be honored, man!” Bill said, a grin breaking out over his face. “But, yeah, you should probably get back and set that date.”

“Heh, yeah. I’m seriously considering suggesting eloping at this point.”

* * *

Valentine’s Day was fast approaching, and just like all the other holidays the past season, the town was jumping at the chance to celebrate. The few restaurants that had reopened were advertising specials for the day, businesses were decorating with little paper hearts and other homemade decorations, and even Bailey’s was hopping on the bandwagon with a special event for the evening.

“This holiday is bogus,” Sabring grumbled sullenly, plopping down in the chair in front of Jake’s desk at the police department.

“I agree, but Emily is excited about it,” Jake responded, leaning back in his chair.

“What have you two got planned?”

"Uhhhh..."

"Jake!"

"I've been busy!" Jake said in his defense. "I'll pull something together in time!"

"You better!"

"Coming from the woman who's sworn off the holiday."

"I have a good reason," Sabrina said, grimacing. "Anyway, I just came in to tell you I'm outta here for the day."

Jake felt bad for inadvertently poking the still fresh wound, but knew it wouldn't help to further the subject. "I'll see you in the morning."

She smiled and bid her friend a farewell and went to collect her coat from her desk. Sabrina sighed and exited the front doors of city hall, doing her best to ignore the red, pink, and white everywhere around her while she descended the stone steps.

"Hey, Sabrina!"

She turned towards the voice to see Calvin walking down the same steps to her.

"What's up, Calvin?"

The man smiled at her but suddenly seemed a little nervous. "I'm pretty sure I already know the answer, but...Valentine's Day is like two days away and I was wondering if you'd like to go to dinner with me?"

Sabrina's eyes widened at his request. He hadn't attempted to ask her out since the fall festival and she thought he had given up. Of course, there had been an obvious reason for him to back off, but now it was clear to most everyone that Bill and Sabrina only spoke when they needed to. 

It was that painful reason that had her answer tumbling out of her mouth before she even realized it. "Sure, Calvin. That sounds nice."

"Really?!" Calvin said, a grin pulling at his lips. "Great! I'll pick you up at seven on Friday?"

"Yeah, that sounds good," she agreed, returning his smile.

* * *

Bill had volunteered to work the evening shift on Friday, a decision he was quickly regretting as he drove to the police department to start his work day. Couples were already out in hordes starting their dates for the night, and he found himself grumbling in annoyance at the displays of affection that he felt were being shoved down his throat. The whole day was nothing but a giant smack in the face, reminding him of what an idiot he was being, even if he had somewhat convinced himself it was for the best.

His mood didn't improve when he walked into Jake's office, the sheriff and Jimmy both freezing like a couple of deer caught in headlight beams. He rolled his eyes. He really needed to start knocking before coming in here because he had obviously walked in on another conversation he wasn't supposed to be a part of.

"Should I come back?" Bill asked when neither of the men made a move to speak first.

"Uh, no," Jake said quickly. "Jimmy and I were just going over the schedule for the evening. There's been a change or two."

Bill didn't miss the worried glance Jake cast in Jimmy's direction.

"What kind of changes?" Bill asked.

Jimmy took up the lead then. "Really just one. Malone is gonna be riding with you tonight instead of Riley. They switched shifts today."

"Why?"

Jake and Jimmy shared another cautious look and Bill started to get annoyed.

"Will you two just come out with it?! Why are you acting so weird?" Bill demanded in exasperation. 

Jake sighed after a nod from Jimmy. "Calvin got Malone to cover his shift because he ended up getting a date for tonight."

"With who?"

"Sabrina," Jimmy said quietly.

Bill felt like he had been punched in the stomach, and if the look in his friends' eyes was any indication, it also showed on his face. He quickly schooled his expression and stood a little straighter. 

"Well good for them," he said, a little more edge to his voice than he intended. "Malone and I still on Maine Street and surrounding blocks?"

"Yeah," Jake confirmed.

"Great!" Bill responded, the sharpness remaining in his tone. "I'll go get him and head out. You two get outta here before your women start wondering where you are. I'll let you know if we have any issues."

The sheriff and chief deputy watched Bill exit the office, slamming the door behind him and calling for Malone to follow him as he stalked out of the department.

"He's not taking it well," Jimmy commented, turning to Jake who slid into his chair.

"Well, to be fair, I'm not thrilled about the idea either," Jake admitted. "But Bill made his choice and now he has to deal with her trying to move on."

"I don't think either of them are ready for that."

"I don't either."

* * *

"How do I look?" Sabrina asked, doing a spin for Mimi and Stanley in the middle of the Richmond living room to show off her mid-thigh length, burgundy sweater dress with decorative silver buttons up the right side and knee high black suede boots.

"You look fantastic!" Mimi enthused, jumping up from the couch to get a closer look. "Doesn't she look great, Stanley?" She turned when her finacé didn't answer to level a warning look in his direction from where he sat in one of the armchairs.

"She looks like she's gonna be cold," Stanley said sullenly.

Sabrina sighed, meeting Mimi's gaze again. She knew her cousin wasn't happy about her accepting Calvin's dinner invitation, but she hoped he would at least try to be supportive. 

"Don't do this," she pleaded.

"Don't do what?"

"Don't act like I'm committing some sin by going on a date."

"I get going on a date and starting to move on," Stanley bit out, irritation floating into his tone. "But  _ Calvin Riley _ ? Really? Don't you think that's a bit of a bitch move?"

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?!" Sabrina demanded.

"Guys, don't fight!" Mimi tried to interject.

"You know exactly what I mean," Stanley snapped, rising to his feet. "You know Bill can't stand that asshole, and you going out with him makes it seem like you are doing it just to get under his skin!"

"Bill not liking him has  _ nothing _ to do with me going on this date! If Bill doesn't like it, that's his own damn fault for telling me I was a mistake!" Sabrina shouted. She saw headlights coming up the drive through the window and marched towards the front door, wrenching it open and slamming it behind her after she exited.

"That was uncalled for, Stanley!" Mimi scolded, folding her arms over her chest.

Stanley simply shrugged and dropped back into his chair.

* * *

Sabrina had decided before she even got off the porch that she wasn't going to let her fight with Stanley ruin her evening. By the time Calvin had parked his car she had painted a convincing smile onto her face. However, it quickly turned into a real one when Calvin got out of his car with a small heart-shaped box of chocolates and hurried over to open the car door for her. She was taken even further by surprise when he opened the door at the restaurant for her and pulled out her chair when they were brought to their table in front of one of the windows facing Main Street.

Calvin being polite and a gentleman to her had definitely been something she hadn't expected for the night, but that's exactly what he was being. It wasn't in an overly "laying on the charm" type deal either. He was genuinely trying to ensure their date went well, and it kept that smile on her face. Their dinner was filled with conversation and laughter, learning things about each other that they hadn't known, even after growing up in the same small town. Sabrina was happy to realize that it was one of the best nights she had had in over a month and a half.

"Thank you for tonight," Sabrina said, seated across from Calvin at their round table. The surface had been cleared of their dinner plates and they were waiting for the surprise complimentary dessert the restaurant was offering as their Valentine's Day special. "I'm really having a great time."

"Thank you for agreeing to go out with me," Calvin said in turn. 

"I'm glad I did. I've been pleasantly surprised by you tonight."

"What can I say? I'm like a sour patch kid," Calvin said with a chuckle. "Gotta get through the sour to get to the sweet."

Laughter bubbled up from Sabrina's chest at his words. "Oh my God, Calvin! That was so cheesy!"

"Oh, and you can do better?" he playfully challenged.

She made an exaggerated show of contemplating her answer, using her index finger to tap her chin with a thoughtful expression. "OH! I got it!" she exclaimed in triumph. "You're like an onion! You gotta peel back the layers!"

"I hate to break it to ya, doll, but that's equally as cheesy!"

The two of them both burst with laughter as their waitress walked up to their table. Calvin and Sabrina thanked the woman through their chortling while she set their items down. However, the happy sound flowing from Sabrina was abruptly cut off when her eyes fell on the two slices of chocolate swirl cheesecake and glasses of Moscato.

_ Sabrina sighed and got out of her car at Bill's dad's hunting cabin. It wasn't her task that was getting her down—she would gladly help Bill's parents out in any way that she could. It was why she had driven the thirty minutes from Jericho to retrieve a box of hunting gear for Mr. Koehler. No, what had her heart heavy today was that it was Valentine's Day, and she and Bill were over three hundred miles apart. They had both tried to be together, but with his streak of late days at the police academy and her week full of exams and play rehearsals, they hadn't been able to make it happen. _

_ Without much hope for the rest of her evening, she opened the front door, flipping on the light as she entered, and froze in her tracks, eyes wide and mouth slightly agape while taking in the sight in front of her. Bill was standing near a small wooden dining table that held a bottle of Moscato, two wine glasses, and a small chocolate swirl cheesecake. He was holding a bouquet of pink and white roses, his golden amber eyes almost glowing with the grin that lit up his face. _

_ "Happy Valentine's Day, baby," he said, watching her expression as she accepted the fact that he was really there. _

_ "Bill!" Sabrina cried, tears of joy springing to her eyes and hurriedly crossing the room to throw her arms around his neck, crashing her lips to his. _

_ He blindly tossed the flowers onto the table and tightly wrapped his arms around her, deepening the kiss as one of his hands came up to cradle the back of her head. _

_ "I thought you had training all day?" she asked when the kiss ended and his forehead rested to hers.  _

_ "Got done early and tomorrow is an off day. I called Dad to help me surprise you and left as soon as I threw some clothes in a bag." _

_ "You're amazing," Sabrina cooed, pulling him down into another kiss, this one turning heated when she nibbled on his bottom lip. _

"Sabrina?" Calvin questioned, her sudden change in mood worrying him. He could see her eyes glistening as she tried to fight back tears. "Are you OK?"

"Yeah, yeah," she responded a little too quickly, shaking her head in an attempt to clear Bill's mesmerizing eyes and intoxicating kiss from her thoughts. "I'm fine," she lied, forcing a smile and bringing her gaze to meet Calvin's.

Calvin pursed his lips, regarding her skeptically and weighing his response. "You don't look  _ fine _ ."

Sabrina released a defeated breath, letting her fake smile fall. "I'm sorry, Calvin. You've been so sweet tonight and I really have had a great time."

"But…"

"I just don't think I'm ready to date right now. I'm so sorry."

"You have nothing to apologize for, Sabrina," Calvin assured her, reaching across the table to place his hand over hers. "It's hard getting over someone. Especially when you're still in love with them. If you want to talk about it, I'll gladly listen. Who knows, it might help to get it off your chest and maybe I might have some gem of advice to give."

He gave her hand a reassuring squeeze and a genuine smile started to reappear. "You sure you want to hear about my train wreck of a love life?"

"All ears, sweetheart," he promised, grinning at her encouragingly.

Neither of them seemed to notice the Jericho city police cruiser that drove by.

* * *

"Hey! That was Cal and Sabrina!" Malone, a tall and lanky man with dark brown hair and eyes to match said from the passenger's seat of Bill's police cruiser.

"I didn't notice," Bill lied.

He had seen them all too well. The image of the smile on Sabrina's lips and her hand in Calvin's was currently searing itself into his brain. He was fairly certain he wouldn't ever be able to make it go away.

"Wow, really?!" Malone inquired, snapping his head in the undersheriff's direction. "How could you miss them?"

It took everything Bill had to not audibly growl while he spoke, making sure to keep his eyes on the road and pedestrians walking about the sidewalks. "Because I was doing my job and paying attention to everything else around me. Something you should be doing instead of staring at two people in a restaurant."

"Sorry," Malone mumbled apologetically and turned his focus back to Main Street.

There was silence between them for a short time before the deputy started talking again, and Bill fought the urge to bang his head on the steering wheel.

"Cal was really super excited she agreed to go out with him. He practically begged me to trade shifts. Not that he needed to—I would have done it regardless. He's been trying to get her to go out with him since she started working with us."

"I know," Bill said through a clenched jaw.

"Well, he stopped there for a while cos he said it looked like she was gonna get back with her ex. Apparently that fell apart though."

"Malone, can we talk about something else?" Bill was ready to tase the man next to him to get him to shut up.

"Oh, sure! I'm just really happy for him. It looked like they were having a really good time."

"Malone!" The warning was clear in Bill's voice this time.

"I wonder if he's gonna get lucky tonight..."

"MALONE! SHUT THE HELL UP!" Bill didn't mean to snap, but once he started he couldn't seem to stop himself. "I really don't want to hear about Calvin fucking my girl! So could you please just sit there, shut up, and do your god damned job?!"

Malone stared at the undersheriff with wide unblinking eyes for a moment before he figured out how to talk again. "Y-your girl? I thought…Oh… _ you're _ the ex."

Bill just glared ahead of him and Malone clamped his mouth shut. There was dead silence between them for the rest of their shift.

* * *

Bill was convinced that the particular shift he had just endured had been the longest of his entire career. He had to hold himself back from sprinting into Jake's office to start end of shift processes and get the overnight guys ready to go out on patrol. Finally, with all paperwork completed and put in its appropriate place, he was able to leave and go home.

Less than an hour later after a shower and trying to just go to sleep, Bill found himself staring into his open refrigerator but not really seeing a damn thing that was in it. His and Sabrina’s last night together, the morning after, and the image of Sabrina smiling at Calvin while the man held her hand played in a constant loop within his mind. Malone hadn't really helped matters much either, putting ideas in his head that he had been doing his damndest not to think about. Of course now, peppered in amongst the constant replay were thoughts of what Calvin and Sabrina could possibly be doing now.

Would they go to Calvin's apartment? Back to the Richmond house? Would she let him kiss her? Touch her? Would they—NO! Bill shut the door to his refrigerator a little too hard and turned to lean against it. His hands scrubbed down his face in an attempt to make his mind shut up. It didn't work. He knew what he wanted to do, but he couldn't do it.

At least that's what he tried to keep telling himself as he went up the stairs to his bedroom to change out of his pajamas and into jeans and a white t-shirt. However, by the time he was grabbing his truck keys and heading out his front door, he had accepted that he was going to go see her.

* * *

"So, Bill has no idea about the college in Colby?" Calvin asked, walking Sabrina from his car to her front door.

"None," Sabrina confirmed. "In fact, the only ones that know are you and Jake. I've tried to tell Bill, but it's like he just doesn't want to hear it. Guess he just needs to hate me for a while."

"He doesn't hate you. I don't think he could."

"He's sure as hell acting like it," Sabrina said, turning to Calvin when they reached the door.

"Honestly," Calvin started, meeting her gaze. "I think Bill is just scared. You guys did end pretty shitty, and for the longest time after that you could just tell how brokenhearted he was. I'm not saying that to make you feel bad, I swear. I just think if you two are ever going to move forward he needs to know you really didn't give up on him and that you were trying to fix things _before_ the bombs. I think he also may feel like you see him as a last resort. I'm not saying any of that constitutes his fucked up behavior, but I think I understand _why_ he acted that way. Defense mechanisms are a bitch. You need to talk to him."

"He doesn't want to listen," Sabrina said. "And it's not like I can make him."

"Just give it time. He'll get there."

"Thanks, Calvin. I really do feel better after talking about all of it," Sabrina said, reaching out to hug him.

"Anytime, doll!" he replied, returning her gesture.

Headlights coming down the dirt road and up to the front of the house caught their attention and the two ended their embrace to turn and see who was parking next to Calvin's car. 

"You want me to stay?" Calvin asked upon recognizing Bill's black Dodge.

"No, I'll be OK. Stanley and Mimi will probably be back from their date soon anyway."

"Alright, give me a call if you need to."

Bill got out of his vehicle as Calvin descended the porch steps and the two gave each other a curt nod when they passed. Bill waited until Calvin was driving away before he turned to Sabrina, who was glaring at him with her arms folded over her chest.  _ Damn _ did she look good in that burgundy dress that made her sky blue eyes pop, and those knee high boots made him clear his throat.

"Why are you here, Bill?" Sabrina asked when he came to join her on the porch.

"I…I don't know," he responded honestly.

Sabrina blew out a breath and turned to unlock the front door, pushing it open. "Come in then."

She went into the house and headed towards the kitchen, knowing he was following her when she heard him shut the door behind him. 

"Do you want a beer or something?" she asked, opening the fridge and looking inside.

"No, I'm good."

She shut the door and turned to face him, waiting for what she had a feeling was coming.

"So, how was your  _ date _ with Calvin?" Bill asked, slight disdain coloring his words.

"Is that  _ really _ what you wanna talk about?"

"Wouldn't have asked if I didn't."

"Yeah, OK," Sabrina scoffed. "If you must know, it went well. He's actually not a bad guy once you get to know him."

"Well isn't that great," Bill said sarcastically. "When's the wedding?"

"You can drop the jackass attitude, Bill!" Sabrina snapped. "It wasn't like that!"

"Really?!" he almost snarled, taking a step towards her. "Cos I saw how cozy you guys were when I drove by that restaurant earlier!"

"Oh my God! Are you serious?!" Sabrina said, trying not to raise her voice. "Again, it wasn't anything like that!"

"Are you going out with him again?!" he demanded, closing the distance between them even more.

Sabrina leveled a glare at him and placed her hands on her hips. "I really don't see why that's any concern of yours!"

"Because the thought of him touching you and kissing you is driving me fucking insane!"

"Then maybe you should fucking do something about it!"

Bill surged forward, grabbing her by her waist and crashing his lips to hers. She instantly melted into his kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck while he backed her up against the refrigerator. His tongue slipped passed her lips, tangling with hers and his hands roamed her body. He palmed her breasts before one moved down to find its way under her dress. She moaned into his mouth when his fingers rubbed her clit through the fabric of her panties, sending a rush of wetness from her core.

He groaned at the feeling of her slick soaking through the sheer material and his mouth moved to latch his lips onto her pulse point, sucking hard enough to leave his mark on her. His cock was already rock hard, straining against the confines of his jeans and when she bucked her hips into him the friction fanned the flame of desire. He needed her now.

Bill's lips were back on hers when he hooked his fingers into either side of her underwear and jerked them down, dropping them to fall at her ankles. As soon as Sabrina had kicked them off and to the side, he was picking her up and guiding her legs to wrap around his waist. He walked her over to the nearest countertop, hastily placing her on its surface and knocking the items already there to the ground, neither of them even registering the shattering of glass when the empty coffee mugs and full sugar bowl connected with the tile.

Her hands moved to his jeans, deftly undoing them and freeing his long, hard, thick cock while his mouth sucked and nipped at the sensitive skin on her neck. She lined him up with her now dripping entrance and he didn't hesitate to snap his hips and slam into her.

"BILL!" she shouted, bringing her hands up to tangle in his hair.

His lips claimed hers again and he started to pound into her, both drinking down every bit of the other's moans of pleasure. It was all Sabrina could do to hold on as he increased his speed and set a brutal pace with his thrusts into her.

"Oh fuck!" she shouted, throwing her head back in ecstasy. She could feel him hitting every spot inside of her and that hot coil of release was building at a mind boggling rate. "Bill!! Oh, Bill! Fuck! Don't stop! Fuck me harder!"

Her words spurred him on, digging his fingers into her hips and giving her exactly what she wanted. He could feel her walls starting to flutter around his cock and knew she was almost there. "Come for me, Sabi baby! Wanna feel you come on my cock!"

One of his hands slipped between them, his fingers finding her clit and rubbing furious circles into the swollen bundle of nerves.

She screamed his name over and over, her release hitting her hard and fast while he continued to pump into her. Her clenching walls gave him the final push he needed and his hips stutterd a few times before he spilled his seed inside of her, never ceasing his strokes until they both started to come down from their highs.

He slowly slipped out of her, his forehead coming to rest against hers while they slowly caught their breath. However, neither had time to bask in the afterglow. The sound of Stanley's truck pulling up to the house had both of them snapping to attention.

"Fuck!" Bill exclaimed, jerking away to put himself back together, only pausing for a second when he heard the crunch of glass under his shoe. "Shit, we made a mess!"

Sabrina hopped down from the counter and sprinted to the other side of the kitchen where her underwear had landed. "I'll clean it up later! You might wanna fix your sex hair though," she said, quickly pulling her panties back on and fixing her appearance.

The two managed to make themselves more or less presentable, stepping into the living room right before Stanley and Mimi walked through the front door. The couple each raised a suspicious brow, both surprised to find Bill in their living room. Neither missed the slightly disheveled state their friend and cousin were in.

"Well, you're not who I expected to be here," Stanley said, shutting the door behind him.

Mimi met Sabrina's gaze and instantly started grinning at the sight of Bill's love bite on her neck. "What were you two doing?"

"I uh…I should probably go," Bill mumbled and started to walk towards the door.

"Bill! Wait!" Sabrina called, reaching out to grab his arm before he got too far away.

He turned to her with a pained look in his golden eyes and she felt her heart break all over again. "I'm sorry, Sabi. I just can't."

He pulled away and was out the door before anyone could stop him. Mimi was at Sabrina's side in a second, pulling her into a hug and Stanley looked back and forth between his cousin and the door his friend had escaped through.

"What just happened here?" he asked, his anger starting to mount when he saw the tears in his cousin's eyes.

"What do you think?" Sabrina snapped.

Stanley held back a growl, starting to pace back and forth in front of the front door and running a hand down his face as he contemplated his reaction.

"No," he said, halting his steps once he made a decision. "This shit isn't gonna fly."

Mimi and Sabrina looked at him with worried curiosity as he jerked the door open. "Stanley!" Mimi called. "Where are you going?!"

"To talk to my asshole friend," he seethed with anger and slammed the door behind him.

* * *

Bill hadn't been driving for very long down the dirt road that led from the Richmond's when a set of headlights appeared behind him. Judging from how fast the vehicle was approaching, he didn't have to think twice to know that it was Stanley. His stomach churned while he pulled over to the side of the road and the farmer's truck came to a stop directly behind him. The two men exited their vehicles at the same time and Stanley was instantly stalking towards Bill, face red and eyes on fire with fury.

"I swear to God, Bill! If you were anybody else I would clock you right in your damn face!" Stanley seethed. "You wanna tell me what the fuck is wrong with you?!"

It wasn't a request and Bill knew it. There hadn't been many times when he had seen his friend this angry, and only once had it been directed at him. "Stanley—"

"This is the second time she's cried over you in less than two months!"

"I know—"

"Why?!"

"You wouldn't understand!"

That answer didn't sit well, and Stanley raised himself to his full height as he moved to tower over his friend. "You got that fucking right! I never thought  _ you _ of all people would use someone and then throw them away like you've done to her twice now!"

Bill squared his shoulders, meeting Stanley's intimidating stance with his own. "She threw me away first! I loved her more than anything in this world and I would have done anything to make things work with her!  _ She's _ the one that wouldn't give me the chance!"

"In case you haven't noticed, SHE'S FUCKING HERE BILL, AND SHE'S NOT GOING ANYWHERE!"

"SHE DIDN'T HAVE ANY CHOICE BUT TO COME BACK!" Bill raged. "It's not like she ever tried before!"

"Actually, yeah, she did!" Stanley shot back. "Three months after she left for California she quit her job and came back here for _ YOU _ ! Unfortunately, she got to town the same night you went out with Macy Thompson!"

"What?!" Bill's anger started to fade away, shock setting in at Stanley’s revelation.

"She walked into Bailey's about the time you kissed her." Stanley's tone began to calm as well. "She came back to the house absolutely destroyed, mad at herself that she had let you slip away. I tried to tell her Macy didn't mean anything to you, not the way she did, but she had got it in her head that you would be better off without her. I convinced her to spend the night, but by the time I got up the next morning, she was already gone."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"She made me promise not to," Stanley replied. "She knows she made a mistake in not trying to make it work, but she's never stopped loving you. Just like you never stopped loving her. I just don't understand why you're fighting what you  _ know _ you're feeling so hard."

Bill tried to respond, but just couldn't find the words.

"You can't keep doing this to her," Stanley continued. "It's not right, and I  _ know _ you were raised better than that. You’re my best friend, and I love you, but until you can decide what you really want, I think you need to keep your distance from her. She doesn't deserve to be treated like this no matter what happened between you two in the past."

Bill simply nodded. He didn't know what else to do. The guilt was crashing down on him. This wasn't him. Why did he keep hurting her? That's never what he wanted.

Stanley took Bill's silence as his exit que and turned to walk back to his truck, pausing just before he slid into the driver's seat. "I really want you both to be happy, and you know as well as I do what it's gonna take to get there. Swallowing your pride is hard, I know that, but you both need to do it."


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Secrets revealed, a lovely wedding, and a gun fight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: slight smut

Calvin showed up to his shift the following Monday morning more than half an hour early. There was a certain major he needed to have a conversation with and he hoped to do it away from everyone. He was relieved when the first thing he saw upon entering city hall was Major Beck just finishing up giving his men their orders for the day. He waited patiently as the soldiers saluted and made their way out before slowly approaching the man.

"Major Beck?"

Beck turned and greeted the deputy with a smile. "Deputy Riley, what can I do for you?"

"I was wondering if maybe you had heard anything about the colleges in Kansas opening up again. I know the main focus has been on getting K through twelve back in place, but from what I've seen here, that seems to be up and running."

"It's been a slow process," Beck admitted. "With the University of Kansas being wiped out in the Lawrence attack there has been a lot of disagreement over a lot of the bureaucratic issues, but the community college in Colby right outside of town has been in talks with the rebuilding school boards, and it looks like it's going to become the new university."

Calvin made sure to keep the excitement he felt clamped down before he continued with the conversation. "How far are they in putting things together?"

"Last time I was there the dean from Colby was starting to see if she could track down former employees and some of the people she hired right before the attacks. It's going to take some time, but everything is on the right track."

"Is the dean still Kelly Donahue?"

"Yes, why are you so interested? Thinking of going back to school?"

"No," Calvin replied with a chuckle. "Just asking for a friend.

"Alright, well if I hear anything more, I'll be sure to let you know."

From the corner of his eye, Calvin saw Jake enter the building and quickly thanked the major for the information and bid him farewell. The deputy hurried over to Jake just as he was about to enter the department, calling his name just before he touched the door handle.

"What's up?" Jake asked, curiosity touching his words.

Calvin quickly looked around to make sure they were out of earshot of anyone. "If I can find someone to cover my shift tomorrow, would that be OK?"

"Yeah, that would be fine," Jake replied. "Is everything alright?"

"I just need to take a day trip."

"To where?"

"Colby."

Jake's brow raised in interest at the town just thirty minutes away from Jericho. "What's up there?"

"It's my understanding that you are the only other person in Jericho that knows the answer to that."

Jake nodded, a guarded expression splashing across his features. "Do you know what happened Friday night after you left?"

"Sabrina gave me a shorthand version when I called Saturday. I figure it's time someone did something."

A small knowing smile pulled at the corners of Jake's lips. "Tell ya what, if you can't find someone to take your shift, I'll cover your patrol myself."

"Thanks, Jake. And I think this goes without saying, but let's keep this between us."

"Agreed."

* * *

Sabrina had spent the majority of her work day as far away from the main room of the police department as possible, choosing to give the evidence room some much-needed organization and cataloguing. Jake had popped in periodically to check on her and to try and pull her back to the front, a feat he didn't succeed in. Mimi showed up at noon, dragging her out to Bailey's to have lunch. That's where her cousin's fiancé told her of the dress shop in town reopening, and she had made plans for them to try and find Mimi a wedding dress. Sabrina had agreed and as soon as her shift was over, she waved farewell to Jake and left city hall before day shift returned from their patrols.

Mimi was already waiting outside the store when Sabrina arrived and greeted her with a hug when she walked up. They entered arm in arm, weaving through the few other patrons and heading to the right side of the store.

"What kind of dress are you wanting?" Sabrina asked, starting to browse through one of the racks with dresses in white and cream-colored hues.

"Ya know," Mimi started, mirroring Sabrina's action on a display beside her. "I used to want this big lavish wedding that was going to cost a small fortune, but now I'd honestly marry Stanley at City Hall in a pair of jeans. At the same time though, I want to wear something he's gonna remember. Ya know what I mean?"

_ The department store in Lawrence was crowded with impatient people, crying children, and sales people doing their best to be polite. It was the fifth store Bill and Sabrina had been to that day, and even though she could see in his eyes just how done he was with the shopping experience, Bill never once let it show.  _

_ Sabrina, on the other hand, was steadily growing more and more frustrated as the day dragged on and she still hadn't found a dress for Bill's graduation from the police academy. She was glaring at the rack of dresses in front of her, angrily flipping through them when Bill came up from behind and wrapped his arms around her midsection, resting his chin on her shoulder. _

_ "Why are you looking at those dresses like they insulted you?" he asked, turning his head to peck her cheek with his lips. "This is supposed to be a fun day." _

_ "You're right it is!" she exclaimed, dropping her hands to rest on his. "And it would have been if I had been able to find something at the first store—or hell even the second!—and then we could’ve done the rest of what we had planned today! But, no! Here we are at five in the afternoon and yet another damn store because I can't find anything good enough! I'm sorry, baby." _

_ "Good enough? Sabi, anything you wear is going to be completely fine. It's not like there's a dress code for you." _

_ "I know that, but you've done so well and I'm so proud of you!" She turned in his arms to drape hers over his shoulders. "You're graduating at the top of your class  _ **_and_ ** _ you already have a job offer from the Jericho Police Department. I wanna look perfect for you!" _

_ A large grin pulled at his lips and he placed a sweet kiss to her mouth. "Everything about you is already perfect to me, baby," he assured her, locking his eyes with hers. "You could wear a damn trash bag and I would still think you are the most beautiful woman in any room." _

_ "I'm so lucky to have you," Sabrina said, finally smiling again and carding her fingers affectionately through his hair.  _

_ "I'm the lucky one," he said and kissed her once more. When he pulled away, his eyes caught something behind her and he reached into the rack to pull out a dress that had captured his attention. "What about this one?" _

_ Sabrina turned and her eyes sparkled with excitement, her hands clasping under her chin as she gazed upon the navy blue, off the shoulder, skater cocktail dress. "Oh, Bill!!! It's perfect!!" She plucked the dress from his fingers and grabbed his hand to lead him towards the fitting rooms. "Come on! I  _ **_have_ ** _ to try it on!" _

_ A few minutes later, Sabrina stepped out of the dressing room with the dress on and she smiled impishly at the way Bill's jaw hit the ground, his amber eyes going round at the sight of her. It made a devilish idea develop in her mind as she gave him a twirl and asked, "What do ya think?"  _

_ Bill had to clear his throat before he could answer. "You look fantastic!" _

_ "Then mission accomplished!" she said excitedly and turned to go back into the fitting room, pausing just before she shut the door. "Will you come help me with this zipper?" _

_ "Sure," he said, rising from his seat and making his way into the tiny room with her. _

_ Closing the door, she turned to give him access to the zipper and he slid the tiny piece of metal down the length of her spine. Sabrina let the dress slide from her body and turned to him in just her teal lace bra and panties. Her grin widened upon seeing his amber eyes turn molten gold with desire and she slipped her arms around his neck to capture his lips in a passionate kiss. His hands skimmed up her thighs to her ass and he gripped both cheeks as she started to walk him backwards to sit on the bench style seat mounted to the wall. _

_ "You have been so amazing today," she said, bending over him to kiss along his jawline and run her fingers down his chest and stomach to the top of his jeans. "I wanna do something just for you." She locked her gaze with his, dropping to her knees between his legs and popping open the button on his pants. _

"Yeah," Sabrina croaked, shaking her head to clear out the past. "I know exactly what you mean."

"I don't even really want white!" Mimi stated, her hands landing on her hips. "I want something different."

"Then get another color," Sabrina suggested, turning to her friend. "Stanley's favorite color is red. What's yours?"

"Red."

"Well that settles that!" Sabrina said enthusiastically. "Red dress it is!"

"I love that idea!" Mimi exclaimed and took Sabrina by the hand to lead her to a section of the store with varying styles in the aforementioned color.

* * *

It had been a week since that Valentine's Day that Bill had royally fucked up. Seven days since his fight with Stanley that knocked him on his ass, and a hundred and sixty-eight hours since he had spoken to Sabrina. She had avoided being in the same room with him for longer than five minutes at work, and he really couldn't blame her—he could barely stand to be around himself. Plain and simple, he had been a coward and more than likely ruined his chances of ever being able to fix things with her. And all because he was too scared to let himself be vulnerable and actually talk about what was still clearly between them.

Of course, he thought he was doing a good job of keeping his self-loathing clamped down, but that idea had been shot to hell when Jimmy confronted him about his sour attitude earlier that day while they were out on their patrol. Bill had tried to tell him he was fine, but that didn't pan out well for him either. He’d ended up sitting in a corner booth at Bailey's with his friend and nursing a beer, staring through the window at what used to be the town's jewelry store.

"Bill!"

Jimmy's call shattered through his thoughts and Bill snapped his focus to his friend.

"Did you hear what I said?" Jimmy asked.

"Uh…no…sorry," Bill admitted sheepishly.

"What were you thinking about?" Jimmy asked, trying to get the man to open up.

_ Bill was practically bouncing with excitement when he entered through the front entrance of the Jericho jewelry store. Mrs. Warren—the elderly woman standing behind the counter who owned the business with her husband—greeted him with a cheery smile as he walked up to her. _

_ "Good afternoon, Mrs. Warren," he said when he reached her. "Your husband called me a little bit ago to tell me my order was ready." _

_ "Oh, yes, yes! He finished the engraving this morning," she confirmed happily, crouching down to pull out a small green velvet ring box from a locked cabinet underneath the display cabinet. She stood, placing the box on the counter and lifting the tiny lid to reveal an oval cut imperial yellow topaz gem accented by two round diamonds on either side set in a thin sterling silver band. "Interesting choice for an engagement ring." _

_ "My girlfriend loves this kind of topaz," Bill explained, gingerly taking the ring from its holder to examine it. "She's mentioned more than once how it reminds her of my eyes. I want her to think of me when she looks at it." _

_ A bright smile grew over his face as he read the engraving written in cursive script on the inside of the silver band: my first & my last. _

_ "It's perfect!" he breathed. _

"Nothing," Bill lied, averting his gaze from his friend.

Bill felt Jimmy's eyes narrow on him, the man starting to lose his patience. "Come on, Bill. I'm not stupid. I can see something is eatin' at you. You might feel better if you talk about it."

"Why do I get the feeling you already have an idea of what's going on?" Bill asked, dragging his eyes back to Jimmy and trying to keep the bitterness out of his tone.

"Because it doesn't take a genius to see that you and Sabrina are avoiding each other again…and I may have had to talk Jake down from kicking your ass Monday morning."

"I was wondering why I hadn't heard his two cents’ worth." Bill couldn't hide his disdain now.

Jimmy sighed, taking in the pain he could see in his friend's eyes. "What do you want, Bill?"

"I don't know."

"Yes, you do!"

"No! I don't!"

"Dammit, Bill! If you'd just admit it to yourself, you would make this whole situation easier on everyone!"

"Fine!" Bill half shouted, banging his hand on the table. "I want  _ her _ ! I want to fix this! I want to give her the damn ring I bought for her and bring her home to the house that was supposed to be ours!"

Jimmy's brow shot up in shock; that was definitely more than he was expecting. "You bought a ring?"

Bill's mouth dropped open. He hadn't meant to say that part. The only other person that had ever known about his plans was Sabrina's dad. He sighed; there was no getting out of explaining himself now, not with Jimmy at least. "I was planning on proposing to her on the day we broke up all those years ago. I had the ring custom-made and everything."

"You never told me that," Jimmy said quietly. He suddenly had a whole new level of understanding of what his friend had been going through.

"The only person that knew was her dad because I asked him for his blessing at my cousin's wedding before I left for the academy."

"Bill, you have to fix this," Jimmy insisted. "You  _ both _ need to relearn how to communicate with each other and fix this."

"I know," Bill finally agreed, scrubbing his hands down his face. "I just don't even know where to start anymore."

"In my experience, 'I'm sorry' tends to go a long way."

* * *

Sabrina's plan for avoiding Bill had worked flawlessly for two whole weeks. She would get to City Hall before any of the day shift officers showed up, gather whatever she needed from her desk in the police department, leave Jake a note telling him where she was going to be, and then find a room that needed organizing. As long as she got the records and reports filed for the police department, Jake understood why she needed her space. 

All good things must come to an end, however, and they definitely came to a screeching halt this particular Friday morning before the sun had even started to rise.

The gas gauge on her truck had gone out a week ago, and she was currently waiting for the part she had ordered to come in so she and Stanley could fix it. In the meantime, she was being very vigilant in keeping track of the miles she drove so she would know when to put gas in her tank. That was, until Stanley borrowed her truck the night before and she had woken up late this morning. She left in such a hurry, she completely forgot to fill up her tank from the reservoir tank on the farm and ended up running out of gas five miles from the farm and eight from town.

Damn, what she wouldn't give for a working cell phone right about now.

She cursed her forgetfulness as she trekked back to the Richmond farm on foot, in thirty degree weather, wearing a coat that was definitely not meant for prolonged exposure to the frigid temperatures. There were also a few choice obscenities muttered at the set of headlights that drove by her until she heard the vehicle slow down and turn around. She knew Jake had to take the same way to work and prayed that it was him. He would give her a ride! Unfortunately, that's not who was looking at her from the driver's seat of the black Dodge crew cab while they rolled their window down.

"What are you doing walking down the road at five in the morning?" Bill asked, pulling his vehicle beside her and putting it in park. "It's below freezing out here!"

"You don't think I know that?!" Sabrina snapped. "I ran out of gas and Stanley's is closer than the gas station."

"How did you manage to run out of gas?" Bill asked incredulously.

"My gas gauge is busted!" Sabrina replied hotly. "And Stanley borrowed my—ya know what? It's not like you even care!"

She started walking again, stomping away and hoping he would just leave her alone. He didn't. A few moments later she heard him pull over to the shoulder of the road, shut off his engine, and get out of his truck. Within seconds he was walking beside her.

"Of course I care," he said quietly. 

"You got a funny way of showing it."

He was silent for a beat, but finally came back with, "Please, let me give you a ride, Sabi."

"No," she said, keeping her eyes ahead of her and deliberately ignoring the use of his nickname for her.

She heard him huff and knew he was trying not to respond to her stubbornness with anger. To his credit, his voice was calm when he spoke next. "Then I guess I'm walking with you."

"You'll be late," she told him, watching him from the corner of her eye as he took off his police coat and draped it on her shoulders. Her eyes closed momentarily at his body heat that was still inside the material, but she quickly snapped them back open. "And now you're gonna be cold."

"Jake will understand and I'll be fine."

"Why are you doing this?" she asked.

"It's not safe for you to be walking alone in the dark being this cold. We've come a long way, but there are still road gangs out there, and the chances of running into them increase after you pass the bridge."

She wanted to argue, but she knew he was right. Stanley had run a few guys off with his shotgun a few nights ago, and Bill was obviously trying not to fight with her. Her steps halted and his did the same, turning to look at her. 

"OK," she relented. "We should probably drive."

He simply nodded and led the way back to his truck, opening and closing her door for her before he went around to get back into the driver's seat. He started the engine, but paused before he pulled into the road, pulling her attention to him.

"Where's your truck?" he asked.

"Bout half a mile behind us on the side of the road."

"Stanley has a spare key?"

"Yeah," she replied slowly. 

"Then why don't I just take you on in to work and you can call Stanley once the sun comes up to get it? That way we're both on time."

"Yeah, that works."

Bill gave her a half smile, and for a moment she could see something more shining in his eyes. She knew that look. It had been years, but she could still tell that there was something brewing just below the surface that he wanted to say. He just couldn't find the words. She watched him turn his focus back to the road and pull out, heading towards city hall.

"Thanks, Bill," she said quietly. She may have still been mad at him, however he had just saved her from freezing…again.

"You're welcome."

There was an uncomfortable silence that settled between them after that, one that had Sabrina fidgeting in her seat before they had even made it halfway to their destination. 

"I can't believe you still have this thing," Sabrina said, not being able to handle the quiet anymore.

"What? My truck?" Bill questioned, glancing at her briefly.

"Yes, this old thing!" she exclaimed playfully. "You got this thing when we were nineteen and it wasn't necessarily new then."

"It's just an eighty-five! She's not  _ old _ ! She's  _ classic _ !" Bill said defensively, but a smile pulled at his lips. "And she still runs beautifully!" He reached out and affectionately rubbed the dash board in front of him. "Don't listen to her—she doesn't know what she's talking about."

Sabrina couldn't help the bubble of laughter that sprung up from her chest and she didn't miss the way his grin grew at the sound. God, she missed being like this with him.

"And you gotta admit," Bill continued, looking in her direction again, this time locking his gaze with hers. "We had some pretty good times in this truck."

_ It was late and pouring down rain at the lake where Bill and Sabrina had parked his truck, far away from prying eyes. She was straddling his lap in the center of the backseat, their shirts and her bra discarded somewhere in the cab. _

_ "Bill!" she whimpered, her head thrown back and fingers locked in his hair, following the movement of his head as his talented mouth alternated between her nipples.  _

_ His teeth grazed and tongue swirled over the taut, sensitive buds, causing her hips to buck involuntarily against his fingers that were under her skirt, lightly tracing her folds and clit through the fabric of her underwear, already soaked with her arousal. His free hand trailed fingertips over her skin, leaving goosebumps in their wake and adding to the multitude of sensations he was sending throughout her body. _

_ His cock was hard enough to break concrete, throbbing and straining against the confines of his jeans, but oh how he loved to watch her come undone because of his touch. The way her body moved, the sounds and words that fell from her mouth, and the way she screamed his name when she came for him. He couldn't get enough of her. _

_ "Bill! Please!" she whined. He had her need for him wound so tight she was about to snap. _

_ "Tell me what you want, Sabi baby," he said, only removing his mouth from her breasts long enough to get the words out. _

_ She opened her mouth to speak, but the words turned into a loud keen when he pushed her underwear aside and oh so slowly slid two fingers deep inside her and held them there. _

Bill and Sabrina both quickly averted their gaze from one another, heat visibly rising in their cheeks while they focused very intently on the road in front of them. The air inside the vehicle suddenly felt heavy and the two of them did their best to hastily shove down the steamy thoughts playing out in their heads.

"You did a great job on the evidence room!" Bill said, his voice slightly strained. He desperately needed to change the subject before he had to take his coat from her to hide his lap. "I don't think it's ever been so organized!"

"Uh…thanks," she said after processing his words and trying not to focus on where she needed friction.

Another awkward silence settled over them once more and both were extremely thankful to see Jake getting out of his car when they pulled into the employee parking lot located behind city hall. Sabrina was out of the truck as soon as Bill put it in park, dropping his coat to the seat and rushing over to her friend. Bill had to take a second before he joined them.

* * *

"It turned out to be such a pretty day, didn't it?" Stanley asked, lacing his hand with Mimi's while the two of them ascended the front steps to city hall.

It was around noon and the couple were on their way to the police department to let Sabrina know her fully fueled up truck was waiting for her in the employee parking lot.

"It did," Mimi agreed. "It's still a little chilly, but it's so much better than it was this morning. Spring is definitely on its way!"

"It's the kinda day where good things should happen," Stanley commented, a large grin growing on his face.

Mimi returned his sentiment and said, "I completely agree."

The pair made their way inside and headed straight for the entrance of the police department. Upon going through the doorway they found Jake, Jimmy, Bill, and Calvin gathered around Sabrina where she sat behind the front counter, all of them intently staring down at what appeared to be the day's schedule with a few names scratched out on the evening shift with frustration all over their faces.

"What's wrong guys?" Stanley inquired, he and Mimi moving closer.

The group looked up and greeted them briefly before Jake explained. "Derek's wife went into labor, Malone and Hill have the flu, and Crabtree broke his foot."

"So we're short four people for patrols this evening," Calvin added.

"What are you gonna do?" Mimi asked.

"The only thing we can do," Jimmy started.

"The four of us are pulling doubles today," Bill finished, motioning to himself and the other three officers standing with him. 

"We seriously need to get some more people in here," Sabrina muttered, eyes still locked on the paper in front of her while she chewed on the pen in her hand.

"Show me the option in the budget and I'll do it," Jake said. "As it is, we can barely pay the people we do have what they deserve."

The door to the department opening and closing again interrupted their conversation and every head turned to see the tall, slender man with spiky light brown hair and vivid hazel eyes that were locked on Sabrina's shocked sky blue ones.

"Holy shit," Sabrina said, her pen clattering to the counter top.

"Gauge?!" Jake questioned, shooting a disbelieving look in Calvin's direction who was grinning from ear to ear. 

"BRINA!" Gauge exclaimed as he sprinted around the counter.

The four men surrounding Sabrina hastily backed away as the newcomer barreled to her, grabbing her and hauling her up from her seat to wrap her in a bone crushing hug. Her mouth was still hanging open when he pulled away and focused on Jake, bounding over to give him the same greeting he had given Sabrina. 

"God, I was so fucking ecstatic to find out you two were still alive!" Gauge enthused, pulling away and looking back and forth between Jake and Sabrina with a broad smile on his face. "And then to find out you were  _ both _ in Jericho! I was over the moon!"

"Uh…do either of you wanna explain what the hell is going on?" Stanley interjected, gazing expectantly at his cousin and friend.

"This is our friend Gauge from California," Sabrina said, still unable to believe the man was standing in front of her.

"He and Brina worked together in LA," Jake added, his eyes still on Calvin while the deputy pulled up a chair to watch the scene play out.

"The two of us were thick as thieves!" Gauge informed them, throwing his arm around Sabrina's shoulders. "Weren't we Brina?"

"Uh, yeah," Sabrina said, still blinking up at him with shock in her eyes. "Not that I'm not happy to see you, Gauge…but…what are you doing here?"

"Oh!" Gauge said as if he suddenly remembered why he was there in the first place. He pulled an envelope from his back pocket with Sabrina's name written across the front and an emblem for the University of Kansas printed in the corner. He handed it to her and said, "I'm here on behalf of Dean Donahue to re-offer you the position of the stagecraft professor and technical director. The only difference is that it’s now for the University of Kansas instead of Colby Community College. Colby is now the new state university."

Sabrina's mouth dropped open again as she accepted the envelope from him, staring down at it like it might explode.

"I'm sorry," Bill finally spoke up. "What do you mean  _ re-offer _ ?"

Sabrina looked up and her gaze immediately locked with Jake's.

_ It was a bright and sunny September morning in Los Angeles as Sabrina sipped her coffee while sitting on the balcony of her sixth floor apartment in a plush patio chair. The French style doors opening and closing pulled her attention and she turned to see a haggard looking Jake stumble through the threshold clinging to a mug of black coffee and plop down in the chair opposite her. _

_ "Morning, sunshine," she said softly, knowing he had at least a slight hangover from the night before when he had shown up at her apartment drunk and mumbling about Afghanistan and Iraq once again. She only hoped he had waited until after the over two hour drive between San Diego and her apartment before he had gotten the bottle of whiskey. _

_ "Morning," Jake grumbled, his eyes looking at her yet seeing something else far away from where they were. "Sorry I just showed up last night." _

_ "You know I don't mind. I would rather have you here and safe with me than alone when you get like that." She regarded him cautiously for a moment, trying to gauge his mood before she asked her next question. "Are you ever going to tell me what really happened over there?" She knew enough to know he had been through hell and that he may now be labeled as a person of interest, but even in his drunken ramblings he was tight lipped about the details _

_ "Trust me, Brina," Jake responded darkly. "You don't wanna know." He paused for a brief second, obviously searching for a topic change before she could further the conversation. "I've got a job interview next week. A private jet charter in San Diego. They cater to top executives and celebrities and the pay is insane!" _

_ "That's great!" she said, letting the subject drop for now. "Are you gonna be able to pass the background check?" _

_ "I'll cross that bridge when I get to it." _

_ Sabrina sighed. She knew he was trying, and he had come such a long way from how he had shown up at her apartment five years prior after Emily's brother Chris had died. He had been doing well until he got involved with a company that shipped him off overseas for nearly two years. He had come back different after that with things attached to his name that had been giving him grief in finding a job. As of late, he had been turning up at her apartment more and more and she almost hated the news she had to give him, but maybe she could soften the blow. _

_ "If the interview doesn't work out," she started. "What would you say to coming back to Jericho with me?" _

_ His brow shot up at that one. "Since when do you want to go back to Kansas?!" _

_ "Honestly, I have for a while," she admitted. "I've been applying to Colby Community College for the past few years trying to snag their stagecraft professor and technical director position, but the current instructor kept putting off their retirement. Gauge has been applying for the theatre director spot, but he's been having the same issue. We both finally got called in for interviews last week and we flew in together for them." _

_ "And?"  _

_ "We both got offered the positions on the spot." _

_ "Brina, that's great! I'm really happy for you…but I have to ask why?" _

_ Sabrina turned to gaze out over the city, already bustling with life. "I miss Stanley and Bonnie. I wanna see my dad more than three times a year. I…" Her voice trailed off when she felt a tear sting at the corner of her eye. _

_ "You miss Bill," Jake guessed. _

_ She nodded, bringing her eyes back to him. "I know it's crazy and probably a little pathetic, but I've never got him out of my heart, Jake." _

_ "It's not crazy or pathetic," he assured her. "You can't help what your heart wants." He sighed as he wove his hands together behind his head. "Ya know, our lives would probably be a lot easier if we just fell in love with each other instead of being stuck on Bill and Emily." _

_ "You're probably right," Sabrina agreed. "That's not gonna happen though. You're way too tall for me, Jake." _

_ Jake laughed loudly at her playful jab, only wincing a little at the pain that throbbed in his head. "And you're way too short for me." _

"You don't know?" Gauge asked, his eyes falling on Bill and then the rest of the confused faces in the room, minus Jake and Calvin. "I guess not. Brina and I had both been trying to get theatre and technical director positions at Colby for years, but the former professors were holding off on retiring. A few weeks before the bombs we finally got interviews and they hired us both on the spot."

Bill stared at Sabrina with wide eyes, not sure how to respond and she tentatively met his gaze.

"What?!" Stanley exclaimed with irritation, coming around the counter with Mimi. "Brina, why didn't you tell me?!" He turned his gaze to Jake, leveling an accusing finger in his friend's direction. "Did you know about this?!"

"Uh…" Jake responded lamely. 

"I can't believe none of you knew!" Gauge said. He tightened his hold on her shoulders as he peered down at her fondly. "I always thought it was so sweet how she would always say she left her heart in Jericho and she needed to get back to it."

Stanley started, his expression softening as he looked from his cousin to Bill, finally realizing why she never said anything. The atmosphere slowly started to reach uncomfortable levels as one by one the others realized the conversation was about to head in a direction that should have been just between Bill and Sabrina. Well, everyone except for Gauge who seemed to be oblivious to, or ignoring, the tension in the room.

"So, don't leave me in suspense," Gauge said, eyes still on Sabrina who was still locked in a staring contest with Bill. "Did you find what you were looking for here?"

"What?" His question had broken her trance and Sabrina snapped her head in Gauge's direction. "Uh…" 

"We should probably get back out there, Jimmy," Bill said, moving towards the door without waiting for his partner. The undersheriff was out of the room before anyone could even respond.

Jimmy shot Sabrina an apologetic look and quickly followed after Bill.

"I have work to do, too," Sabrina said, her voice cracking. She quickly hugged Gauge and hastily walked away and down the hallway leading to the other parts of the department.

Gauge turned confused features to Jake. "What did I miss?"

* * *

Out of all the places Sabrina thought she would be after Bill found out about her plans to move back to Jericho before the bombs, sitting in a corner of the city hall records room and hugging her knees to her chest while she cried wasn't one of them. She knew it wouldn't make a difference and after Valentine's Day she had decided not to tell him. There was just too much damage done between the two of them to salvage what they once had and she was finally starting to accept that.

It was no surprise that after only a few minutes of her wallowing in her own self pity that Jake found her. He didn't say anything at first, just sat down beside her and let her rest her head on his shoulder while she wiped away her tears.

"Did you do this?" Sabrina sniffled.

"I helped," Jake admitted. "Calvin was convinced that if everything was out in the open that you two could fix things. He asked for the day off to go up to Colby and I covered the shift for him. I'm sorry, Brina."

"Don't be. You both thought you were helping."

"I can't believe he just took off like that."

"I can," Sabrina sighed. "Apparently all we do is hurt each other anymore."

"You don't know what's going on in his head," Jake tried. "Maybe if you two actually talk—"

"We've tried that. All we do is fight, have angry sex, then avoid each other like the plague."

Jake pursed his lips. He wasn't sure how well his next statement would go over, but it needed to be said. "Listen, I know I haven't been there when you two have supposedly talked, but if you were actually _communicating_ , I have a feeling it wouldn't end with you avoiding each other."

"Maybe, but I don't think I can try any more. My heart can't take it."

* * *

Jimmy hadn't needed to voice his opinion when he and Bill made it to their patrol car. Bill had known that he shouldn't have walked away before he had made it out of city hall. Nonetheless, he listened to Jimmy, agreeing with everything the man said. After all, he had been right all along. God, he had been such a fool and a complete jackass. He knew what he needed to do, and as soon as they rolled into the parking lot on their short break in between the double shifts, Bill was out of the cruiser and rushing into the police department praying that Sabrina hadn't already gone home for the day. Though, he was prepared to go straight to the Richmond farm if she had.

It took some convincing, but Jake finally told his undersheriff that Sabrina was in the city hall records room filing the department's paperwork for the month of February. He sprinted towards the room, not caring about the odd looks he received, and just like Jake said, there she was, putting papers away. She looked up when he entered, clearly confused as to why he was there.

"Bill—"

"Sabi, we need to talk."

He crossed over to her, taking the papers from her hands and placing them on the table she had been standing at. When she finally met his gaze, everything he had planned on saying left his head and the nerves set in, leaving him with only one phrase.

"I'm sorry," he said. "For everything."

He reached out for her and when she pulled away, it felt like a punch to his stomach.

"I'm sorry too, Bill," she said quietly, wrapping her arms around herself and taking another step back from him. "But I can't do this. There's just...there's just too much now."

Bill wanted to argue, to tell her they could work through all of it. That he wouldn't give up until they figured it all out. However, Jake walking into the room put a grinding halt on his efforts.

"Sorry to interrupt guys," Jake said, looking between them. "Gray wants to see us in his office."

"Why?" Bill asked, clearly annoyed.

"I don't know," Jake admitted. "He had me send Jimmy, too."

"Well then we better not keep him waiting," Sabrina said and walked passed them to exit the room.

* * *

The trio made it to Gray's office together and found Jimmy standing in front of the closed door with Emily and Gail. All of them looked just as clueless as the three who had just joined them.

"Mom? Em?" Jake questioned, hugging both of them. "What are you doing here?"

"Stanley called and asked me to meet him here," Gail explained.

"And Mimi called me," Emily added.

"Has anyone knocked on the door?" Bill asked.

"Yup," Jimmy said. "Gray just poked his head out and said we couldn't come in until you three got here."

"Well, we're here now," Sabrina said, stepping forward and knocking on the door.

They were all taken aback when Stanley was the one to open the door wearing black dress slacks, a freshly ironed maroon button-up, and a bright smile on his face.

"It's about time y'all got here!" he exclaimed, ushering them all hastily into the room.

Gray was standing in front of his desk holding…a Bible? Mimi was grinning ear to ear next to him and Sabrina tilted her head in question at the simple long sleeve ruby red dress she wore that was accented by a rhinestone chain belt hanging low on her hips. Then it clicked.

"OH MY GOD!" Sabrina exclaimed excitedly, running across the room to hug Mimi. "You guys are getting married!"

"Now?!" Jake and Bill said together.

Stanley walked between them and put an arm around each of their shoulders. "You got that right! The only thing that matters to us is that we get married surrounded by the people who mean the most to us, and we got that right here!"

"Oh this is just perfect!" Emily said, moving with Gail to stand with Mimi and Sabrina.

"I have to agree," Gail said.

"Then let's get this show on the road!" Jimmy suggested.

With just a little more conversation on how things were going to work, they all took their places. Gray stood before Stanley and Mimi. They faced each other, Mimi’s maid of honor and Stanley’s best man in their spots beside them while the others gathered around them all. 

Gray opened his Bible to the right place and looked between Mimi and Stanley, grinning just as much as everyone else.

"We are gathered here today…" Gray started.

As he continued, Bill and Sabrina's eyes found one another.

_ Bill hated wearing a suit. It was hot, stuffy, and he felt like the tie around his neck was going to strangle him. He was at his cousin's wedding though, and he had to wear the dark blue infuriating outfit for the occasion. Sabrina also may have had a hand in convincing him. Laughter coming from the older man with graying golden-blonde hair and light blue eyes sitting beside him at the overly decorated round table pulled his attention. _

_ "Stop fidgeting, Bill," the man said with a smile. "This thing is almost over and we'll be able to take these vile suits off my daughter insisted we wear." _

_ Bill tried to smile at Sabrina's dad, but the damn tie… He reached up to loosen it before he spoke. "Sorry, Mr. Richmond—" _

_ "Bill," Mr. Richmond interrupted. "You've been dating Brina for almost five years now. You are twenty-one years old and leaving for the police academy next week. Are you ever going to start calling me Ian?" _

_ "Maybe one day I will," Bill said with a chuckle that was abruptly cut off when Sabrina walked up to the table to set a flute of champagne down in front of her father. _

_ It wasn't the first time he had seen her in the soft pink sleeveless dress with a sweetheart neckline and a skirt that flowed around her legs, but she just looked so breathtakingly beautiful he couldn't help but stare. With all the uncomfortableness of the suit temporarily forgotten, he stood and held out his hand to her. _

_ "May I have this dance, pretty lady?" he asked when she turned to him. _

_ "Absolutely," she said, and slipped her hand into his. _

_ He led her onto the dance floor, immediately sweeping her up into his arms and swaying her along to the music floating through the room. The rest of the guests seemed to disappear as they looked into each other's eyes and got lost in one another. _

_ "Ya know," Bill said, resting his forehead to hers. "You're the most beautiful girl here." _

_ "I think you may be a little biased," Sabrina said with a small giggle. _

_ "Maybe," he said, pulling her closer. "Doesn't change my opinion though." _

_ "You look pretty good yourself in that suit," she told him, her hand tracing along the lapel of his jacket. _

_ "Glad you think so." _

_ Sabrina sighed happily and let her head rest on his shoulder. "The wedding was so beautiful, wasn't it? And Gemma's dress! Oh, it's so gorgeous! And don't they just look so happy? Can you just imagine if we got married?" _

_ He could. They both could clearly see that day in their future. Standing up in front of all their friends and family and vowing to love each other for the rest of their lives. _

_ "More than you know," Bill replied. _

_ They danced in their own happy world until the voice of the DJ came through the speaker system to announce that it was time for the bouquet toss. They reluctantly parted and Sabrina gathered with the rest of the unmarried women in the middle of the dance floor while Bill made his way back to sit with Sabrina's dad. However, now there was something on his mind that he had wanted to talk to Ian about for some time now. He had planned on doing it the next day, but now he just couldn't wait any longer. He knew what he wanted for his future and who he wanted it with. _

_ Ian caught the nervous look on the young man's face when he sat down next to him and he regarded him with concern. "Everything alright, son?" _

_ "Uh yeah…" Bill started. Why was he so fidgety all of a sudden? "I uh…I have something I need to ask you. I've wanted to for a long time now, and I was gonna wait until tomorrow and come over to your house and talk to you, but…well, Mr. Richmond…I just can't wait anymore." _

_ Ian's face split into a wide grin. "Then ask me." _

_ Bill blew out a puff of air through his lips, summoning his courage. "Well, Mr. Richmond, sir…I was wondering…I mean…I would like to ask for your blessing to ask Sabi to marry me?....Please…" _

_ Ian made a show of exaggeratingly contemplating his request, tapping his finger with his chin for a moment and making Bill sweat. "I'll tell ya what, Bill. I'll give you my blessing on one condition." _

_ "W-what?" _

_ "You start calling me Ian." _

_ Ian stuck out his hand and Bill eagerly shook it with his own. "You gotta deal, Ian." _

"Then by the power invested in me by the state of Kansas," Gray said—even he couldn't contain the ecstatic smile on his face—"I now pronounce you husband and wife. Kiss your bride, Stanley."

Bill made absolutely certain the smile on his face remained as he watched his best friend pull his new wife to him and kiss her deeply. Despite the images assaulting his mind reminding him of what he almost had had and tearing at his heart, he wasn't going to put a damper on the newlyweds' day. He chanced a glance over at Sabrina, who was not surprisingly keeping her gaze from him. He could see the tears in her eyes that she was pushing back with her almost convincing smile. A cheer went around the room, and Bill dutifully followed the sentiment, congratulating the couple with the rest of the group.

"Any plans for a honeymoon?" Emily asked.

"Actually," Mimi started. "We ran into Beck on the way here and told him what we were doing and he suggested that we go to Hoxie. They just reopened the hotel there and he said he was gonna call them up and get us a room for the night as a wedding present."

"That's great!" Sabrina exclaimed. 

"Yeah," Stanley said, his gaze still lingering on his bride. "We can't wait."

"Well, we'll have to throw you one hell of a reception when you get back!" Jake suggested and his eyes dragged to the clock on the wall. He cringed and turned apologetic eyes to his friends. "I'm sorry guys. Bill, Jimmy, and I have to go."

"It's all right," Stanley said, moving from Mimi to give the three officers quick hugs. "I'm glad you guys were here. Y'all be careful tonight."

With another round of congratulations for the happy couple, the three men were out the door and Emily came up to wrap her arm around Sabrina's shoulders when she noticed her starting to edge away from the others as they continued chatting and laughing with each other.

"Hey, you OK?" Emily asked.

"I'm fine," Sabrina replied a little too quickly.

Emily worried at her bottom lip because of her friend's response, but her eyes lit up when an idea struck her. "Why don't you come spend the night with me? Jake won't get off until after midnight and will more than likely be going straight home. You're gonna be going home to an empty house. Let's take the opportunity to have some girl time! We haven't done that in forever!"

Sabrina felt a genuine smile spread across her lips. Spending some time with Emily sounded like a wonderful idea. "I would love to, Em!"

* * *

Bill wasn't entirely sure how it happened, but somehow he had ended up with Jake in a patrol car instead of Jimmy like usual. He had a feeling that the last-minute switch in partners for the evening had been purposeful, but so far, there hadn't really been much conversation between the two men other than what needed to be said. Night had fallen long ago and now the clock was past the ten o'clock hour.

The two had taken the patrol up on the other side of the bridge where most of the Jericho farms were located. The night had been uneventful and seemed to stretch on forever. The two men hadn't even written so much as a speeding ticket, and it appeared that their night was going to continue in such a way.

"How much longer until shift change?" Jake asked, steering the police cruiser down a dirt road towards the edge of the Thompson farm.

Bill checked the watch on his wrist. "Forty-five minutes."

Jake groaned and let his head connect with the headrest. "This day feels like it's lasted a year!"

"Tell me about it," Bill grumbled.

Jake's eyes flicked over in his patrol partner's direction for a second. He hadn't missed the disdain in his voice. "Brina's at Em's."

Bill arched an eyebrow at Jake as he turned to look at him. "And?"

"Just letting you know. Figured you might wanna finish the conversation I had to interrupt earlier."

"There's nothing left to talk about." Bill averted his gaze, suddenly finding the tree line extremely interesting.

"That's bullshit and you damn well know it, Bill!" Jake snapped, slamming on the brakes and lurching Bill forwards.

"Jake, what the hell?!" Bill growled, righting himself in his seat to turn and glare at the sheriff who had already narrowed a dangerous look in his direction.

"Are you seriously gonna sit there and tell me there's nothing between the two of you?!" Jake demanded, professionalism sufficiently thrown out the window.

"I didn't say that! I just meant—"

"That you don't wanna fight for her?"

"I didn't say that either!" Bill said through gritted teeth.

"I get it, Bill," Jake said, his tone verging on infuriated. "She left and she broke your heart. But ya know what?! You  _ didn't _ fight for her then! You just let her go and then when she came back you did nothing but push her away! Now you're surprised when she puts up a little resistance now that you want to talk about things! For fuck's sake, Bill! You fucked her and dropped her  _ TWICE  _ and then you walked out on her again today after Gauge showed up! Tell me what reason she has to believe you aren't just gonna jerk her emotions around again?! You need to get over yourself and do whatever it takes to fix this before you lose her for good!"

"Jake, Bill, come in. Over." 

The voice of Jessica Murphy, the young woman working night shift dispatch for the Jericho Police Department, came through the car's radio and interrupted their conversation. Jake grabbed the CB mic while Bill was still staring at him with his mouth opening and closing, trying to formulate a response to what the sheriff had just said.

"Yeah, Jessica, what's up? Over," Jake said into the mic, not even trying to cover the agitation in his voice.

"Clint Thompson just called. He said he just ran off a couple of guys trying to steal some of his cows. They took off in a dark blue eighty-six Chevy K/C heading towards the tracks through the back of the farm. Over."

"We're on it. Jimmy, Calvin, you guys hear all that? Over," Jake said into the CB.

"10-4," Jimmy replied. "You want back up? Over."

"Yeah, head on over to the tracks and see if you can cut them off at the pass. Bill and I are already on the road to the farm. We'll go in that way. Over."

Jake didn't look in Bill's direction as he put the CB mic back on its holder and took his foot off the brake to drive the patrol car into the Thompson property.

* * *

"A cow?! Seriously?!" Sabrina exclaimed incredulously, looking towards the police scanner on Emily's mantel. "I thought we were past that kinda stuff!"

"Apparently not," Emily sighed, leaning back into the couch where both women sat. "I'm sure this has my father's name all over it. I hope Jake and the guys will be OK."

Sabrina turned her gaze back to her friend and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "They'll be fine. Jake knows what the possibilities are and so do the others."

"I know." Emily shook her head. "Let's change the subject."

"Whaddya wanna talk about?" Sabrina asked, letting her hand fall to her side.

Emily pondered for a moment before an idea struck her. "Jake told me about your friend from Colby stopping in today. Are you gonna accept the position?"

"I already have. After Jake talked me down from the ledge, I called Donahue. They are still a few months from being able to hold any kind of classes, and it will probably only be a few days a week for a while to start out with until more students apply, but things are looking good."

"That's great, Brina!" Emily said excitedly. "Are you still gonna work for Jake until it's full time?"

Sabrina's face fell at her question. That would mean continuing to work with Bill and she wasn't sure she could do that. "I don't know. Jake wants me to. I just…"

"Bill?"

"Yeah."

"Ya know," Emily started. "I still think you two are gonna figure this out."

Sabrina raised a doubtful brow at her friend. "Yeah, everyone seems to think that but us."

"Are you sure about that? I saw the way he looked at you today when Stanley and Mimi were getting married, and how you tried to avoid looking at him after you caught his eye at the beginning. There is still something there, Brina."

"I'm not saying there isn't," Sabrina admitted. "We just can't seem to get on the same page and every time we try, we hurt each other more."

"That's because you can't go into the conversation ready to fight each other," Emily said, more edge to her tone than she was expecting. "You told me yourself that both times you've had sex recently there was a fight right before. Maybe if you tried _talking_ _to_ each other instead of _yelling at_ each other, you might get somewhere."

Sabrina blinked in astoundment at her friend; she hadn't expected Emily to get upset and she wasn't sure what to say.

"If Jake and I were able to work out our issues and finally be together," Emily continued, pinning Sabrina's gaze in place with a hard stare. "Then there is no reason you and Bill can't do the same!"

* * *

Bill and Jake arrived at the stretch of tracks as Jimmy and Calvin were getting out of their patrol car with guns drawn, their headlights shining on the dark blue truck that had been parked just inside the tree line in a poor attempt to hide the vehicle. Bill and Jake mirrored the other officers’ motions and joined them. The four of them held their guns at the ready, on high alert while they approached the truck.

"It's empty," Calvin whispered just loud enough for the others to hear him.

They didn't put away their weapons, but their postures relaxed as they searched over the truck, finding a CB radio inside and stolen tags on the bumper.

"Looks like they knew we were coming," Bill said, leaning into the truck from the driver's side to find the radio on the police department's channel. "Think it's Jonah or his men?"

"That's what my money's on," Jimmy agreed, peering in from the open passenger's side door.

"Looks like we're taking a drive, guys," Jake said, coming around from the back of the vehicle to stand with Bill as he removed himself from the truck.

"We should probably call for more back up," Calvin suggested. 

Before their conversation could continue, gunshots rang out and a scream ripped through the air, shattering what had been a quiet night with blood and bullets.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The aftermath of the gun fight and some bad news.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: smut, death

The conversation between Emily and Sabrina had been tense for a moment, but after the two had talked it through, they picked up a more pleasant mood and were laughing when Jake's urgent voice screamed through the police radio.

"We need back up!" Gunshots could be heard in the background. "Shots fired! Officer down!"

Sabrina and Emily's blood ran cold, both women turning terrified eyes to the radio. The next few moments were filled with a fury of officers responding to Jake's S.O.S., finding out their location and saying they were on their way. EMTs were next, shouting out that they were getting as close as they could and would be ready to move in as soon as possible.

Emily had reached for Sabrina's hand, holding it tightly while they both stared at the device on the mante, both silently begging for more information and praying that the fears screaming in their heads weren't true. After what felt like hours, Jake's voice came through the speaker again.

"All clear! Suspects subdued! We need medical NOW! Over."

"On our way! Over."

Sabrina and Emily both flew from the couch, each of them going for their coats and shoes, neither having to speak to know that they were both headed to the clinic.

* * *

The clinic was chaotic with movement when Sabrina and Emily stepped through the doors. Doctors and nurses were running about gathering supplies and rushing to the ambulance bay. It was clear no one had time to stop and talk, so the two women tried their luck with the nurse at the front desk. However, she was just as frantic, throwing charts together and then bustling away without even acknowledging that they had spoken to her. They were forced to navigate their way to the waiting area and just hope they saw someone with information. 

It wasn't long until Margaret came bursting through the front doors and demanding that someone tell her something. She joined the other two women a moment later after being told no one had any information yet, sitting down next to Sabrina with her arms crossed over her chest and tapping her foot nervously. 

"This is ridiculous!" Margaret snapped. "There is no way they don't know who's coming through those doors!"

"We couldn't even get anyone to acknowledge our presence, so you're already doing better than we are," Sabrina said.

Margaret turned to her and her expression softened when she saw the near sick look on the other women's faces. She pulled Sabrina into a one armed hug and reached out her free one across to take Emily's hand. "Hey ladies! No long faces! We know for sure Jake was well enough to talk on the radio after it was over, and I'm sure Jimmy and Bill are fine!"

"Then that leaves Calvin," Sabrina started.

"Or any of the others out there tonight," Emily continued.

Margaret tightened her hold on both of them. "You can't think like that. It will eat you alive. We have to be strong for our men. They are no doubt going to be rattled tonight and they are going to need us."

Emily and Sabrina both nodded and the three women sat together in silence while they waited. 

It was well over an hour later when a familiar figure walked through the doors that led to the emergency wing and all three of them were jumping to their feet.

"Jake!" Emily and Sabrina called, both women running in his direction.

The sheriff hugged both of them simultaneously, kissing Emily on the lips and Sabrina on the top of her head. "I had a feeling you two would be out here." His eyes fell on Margaret and he broke his embrace to walk over to her. "Jimmy is fine," he said instantly. "He and Bill have matching black eyes, but nothing other than that."

"Oh thank God!" Margaret exclaimed and hugged Jake.

"Bill's OK?" Sabrina asked, her voice coming out more strangled than she wanted to admit. She had been terrified that one of those bullets had hit him and the fear of losing him for good had shaken her to her core.

Jake turned empathetic eyes to her as he broke his hug with Margaret. "Yeah, Brina, he's fine. He and Jimmy are taking two of the three guys we arrested to lock them up now."

"Who got hurt?" Emily asked.

"All three of the guys we arrested. Only one was serious, but he's stable now. The other two just got nicked in the arm, but it was enough to get them to drop their guns. Bill and Jimmy fought those two to the ground after that, hence their black eyes. Calvin got shot in the leg—"

"Oh my God!" Sabrina exclaimed. "Is he OK?"

"He's gonna be fine," Jake assured her. "Bill managed to drag him out of the crossfire and used his belt and uniform shirt as a makeshift tourniquet. The bullet didn't hit any bone, so he's gonna make a full recovery."

"Are they gonna release him tonight?" Sabrina asked.

"No, they were moving him to a room when I came out here. You can probably go see him if you want.

* * *

Sabrina knocked softly on Calvin's door at the clinic and entered to find him looking at her suspiciously from his bed where he sat propped up in a hospital gown.

"Hey," he said slowly. "What are you doing here?"

Sabrina smiled and laughed as she took a seat in the chair next to his bed. "What does it look like? I'm visiting my friend that got shot!"

"Yeah, I get that. Not what I meant."

Sabrina sighed, resting her elbow on the arm of the chair and bringing her hand up to rest her chin in her palm. "I know what you meant."

"Well, why aren't you with him?"

"Did you not see him walk out after your plan failed today?"

Calvin cringed. "You knew that was me? I'm sorry. I thought I was helping."

"I know; Jake told me. I have to ask though. Why'd you do it?" Sabrina said, purposefully trying to steer the conversation away from why she wasn't with Bill.

"I'm a closet hopeless romantic," Calvin joked without missing a beat. He paused at the half-hearted smile she gave him. "I honestly thought if everything was out in the open you two would get your shit together and talk."

"Everyone is so obsessed with us talking!" Sabrina groused, folding her hands in her lap.

"That should tell you something."

"I know," Sabrina huffed. "I just—"

"No more excuses, Sabrina! Go see him! He's probably still at city hall. If not, you know where he lives."

"But—"

"Go!"

"Calvin—"

"Go!"

"I can't just show up—"

"Dammit, Sabrina!" Calvin said sternly. "Will you stop being so freaking bullheaded for one minute?! Happiness is not that damn difficult! Just get the hell out of here and go see Bill or I swear to God, as soon as they let me out of this bed I'm locking the both of you up in a cell until you two figure this out!"

Sabrina smiled and stood to wrap her arms around Calvin's shoulders, hugging him tightly. "You're a really good friend, Calvin. Thank you."

"You're welcome," he said, returning her gesture.

* * *

Bill stood at the sink in his laundry room, clad only in black boxers and staring down at his uniform still covered with Calvin's blood while cold water ran into the basin. His hands gripped the side of the counter, the sound of the running water slowly fading away as his mind drifted to where it had been most of the night: Sabrina. Even when he was being shot at, the first thought that entered his mind was that he might not get to see her again. He needed to fix things between them, had to tell her what was in his heart and always had been. The only question was how?

He scrubbed his hands down his face with a groan and reached to turn the water off. At the same time he grabbed a box of baking soda that was sitting on top of the dryer right next to the sink and dumped some over his uniform. As he sloshed the mixture around with his hand a thought crashed into his mind: He wasn't going to fix a damn thing standing at this sink.

With his decision made, he sprinted out of his laundry room, down the hallway that lead to the living room, and up the stairs to his bedroom. Faster than he had ever gotten dressed before, he threw on a white t-shirt, a pair of jeans, and shoes, and then quickly made his way to the front door, grabbing his coat and truck keys from the hook before he threw the door open.

Then he stopped in his tracks, eyes wide and blinking in disbelief at what he saw.

Sabrina was standing in front of him, her expression matching his with her hand raised like she was just about to knock right before the door opened. Neither knew exactly what to say and stayed locked in their unintentional staring contest for a few moments until Bill's brain finally started working again.

"I was on my way to find you," he told her.

He saw the tears well in her eyes right before she surged forward, throwing her arms around his neck and crashing her mouth to his. Bill groaned with need at the feel of her tongue slipping past his lips and his body flush against her. He gently guided her through the threshold, one of his arms snaking around her waist to pull her, if possible, closer while the other reached out for the door, slamming it closed and pressing her against the wood. Her hands dropped to his sides, fingers fisting in his shirt and trying to pull him even closer.

He could feel the desperation and need in her kiss, a fire blazing with such intensity that it threatened to consume him whole if he didn't resist, but he had no intentions of doing that now. This was where they were supposed to be, their lips molded together, tongues dancing in a perfect rhythm that even after all this time they still found it easily, arms wound tightly around the other while hands explored, and Bill would have given in completely had there not been an undercurrent of an emotion he wasn't expecting. One that had him reluctantly ending their kiss and framing her face with his hands while his thumbs wiped away the tears that had started to fall down her cheeks. Fear.

"What's wrong, Sabi?" He asked softly, resting his forehead to hers.

"Emily and I were listening to a police scanner tonight." Her voice cracked with her emotions, forcing her to pause. "I was so terrified that something…That I'd lost you for good."

He kissed away the fresh tears that were falling from her eyes and pressed his lips tenderly to hers. “I’m right here, baby. I’m not going anywhere.”

“I don’t want to fight anymore, Bill.”

“Neither do I.”

Bill slanted his mouth against hers, his hands skimming down to her shoulders to grip her coat and pull it down her arms. Desire came flooding back in spades as their tongues twisted together once more and the moment her hands were free she was tugging at his shirt. The second the article of clothing hit the ground her fingers were tracing the outlines of the muscles in his chest and stomach, making him shiver as he let her start to walk them towards the couch. They both kicked off their shoes and he rid her of her own shirt by the time they had made it to the piece of furniture. His lips descended down her jawline and to the pulse point of her neck, latching on and sucking harshly, pulling a low moan from her while her deft fingers made quick work of the fasteners on his jeans and pushed them along with his boxers over his hips.

A mischievous smirk played at her lips and before he could start on anymore of her clothing, she gently pushed him to sit on the couch, looking up at her with lust blown eyes. He quickly kicked away his pants and underwear that were still around his ankles and watched as she spread his knees apart so she could stand between them. His rock hard cock twitched against his stomach at the sight of her before him. She ran her hands along her stomach and over her breasts, then dropped them down to the waistband of her jeans. He wanted to touch her, wanted to rip away the rest of the clothing that hid her body from him, but the look of impish delight shining down at him from her sky blue gaze told him what she had in mind was going to be so much better and he couldn’t help but to grasp his shaft and start to slowly pump his hand up and down.

Sabrina’s coy grin never left her while her fingers traced around the button of her jeans, relishing in the way Bill devoured her every move with his eyes. Moving at an agonizingly slow pace, she unbuttoned her pants and slid down this zipper, turning as she started to push the material down her hips to give him a view of her teal colored thong and ass. She heard the small groan coming from deep in his chest when she jutted out her ass to slip the garment down her legs and kick it away once it reached her ankles. She fluidly turned to face him again, her hands skimming up her torso and squeezing her breasts before they came around to unhook her bra that matched her underwear. He looked wound so tight he could snap when she slipped the straps from her shoulders and dropped the bra into his lap. His gaze never left her hands that moved to tweak her own nipples, swallowing hard when she moaned against her own mininstrations, but when she dropped to her knees before him he felt all the air leave his lungs. 

Sabrina took her bra from his lap and tossed it over her shoulder and removed his hand from his cock, replacing it with her own. She started with slow strokes, enjoying the feel of his throbbing member standing at attention for her, and she wanted to give it some. Bill’s head hit the back of the couch when her tongue swirled over his tip, a loud guttural moan reverberating from his chest. His fingers wove into her hair when her lips closed over him and she started to bob her head, working her mouth in tandem with her hand while her tongue swirled on every upward stroke until he felt the back of her throat. He raised his head to watch her as she sent ecstasy through his body and he had to fight back his release when he realized her free hand was inside her panties, playing with her clit while she sucked his cock. Fuck! He needed to be inside her…NOW!

“Sabi,” he croaked, his voice strangled with his effort not to spill his seed down her throat. But when her eyes met his that feat became exponentially harder. “I need to be inside you!”

She smiled around his dick, removing her hands from him and herself while slowly pulling her mouth off of him. He couldn’t help but to grab her wrist and bring her fingers to his mouth, licking them clean of her slick and groaning at the taste of her. He didn’t get to relish the flavor long before she stood and started to slip out of her panties, straddling his lap and grasping his cock again. Bill gripped her hips, steadying her while she lined him up with her entrance and sank down until he was buried to the hilt. Cries of pleasure poured from their mouths at the connection and her arms found their place on his shoulders as she started to bounce herself on his shaft.

“Oh, Bill!” she panted, trying to go slow and extend the moment, but the feeling of him filling and stretching her took over and caused her to move herself at an intense pace.

“Fuck! You feel amazing, Sabi baby!” he groaned. His hands started to roam her body up to her breasts, his palms grazing the taut nipples before rolling them between his fingers.

Sabrina fisted her hands in his hair and crashed her lips to his, keening into his mouth when their tongues met and teased against each other. Bill could feel her walls fluttering around him and his balls tightening, but he was nowhere near ready for this moment to end and he could feel she wasn’t either. His hands fell back to her thighs and relaxed the speed of her hips until she was rocking on him at a slow and steady pace.

Their kiss broke and their eyes met, sending a cascade of emotions down on them. Memories of their times together, the love they shared, and the pain that they had caused each other. All of it had led them to this very moment where neither could no longer deny what was between them. It had always been there, buried deep inside and just waiting to come out. 

The intensity of it all sent them both over the edge into pure bliss as they rode out their powerfully combined orgasms together, shouting each other’s names and filling the room with a symphony of their pleasure until they were both spent and heaving in lungfuls of air with their bodies flush against each other.

“Sabi…” Bill started, his voice trailing away when his mouth couldn’t catch up with all the things he wanted to say that his brain was sending.

Then, like a switch was flipped, she hastily scrambled off of him and immediately started grabbing for her clothes, pulling them on as she found them. His head spun with her actions, trying to comprehend the one-eighty in her mood. Finally, the neurons in his brain started firing again and he stood, reaching for his boxers and pulling them on.

“Sabi!” he started, crossing over to take her hands into his. She had managed to pull on everything but the shirt that she was clutching in her fingers when she turned tear filled eyes to him. “What’s wrong?! Where are you going?” 

He had thought the moment they had just shared had meant something to more than just him and he felt his heart start to break, but it completely shattered when she answered him with tears falling down her cheeks.

“You haven’t seemed very interested lately in being with me after we’ve had sex, and I was leaving before you could kick me out. I don’t think I could handle that rejection from you again.”

“Sabi…Oh God, Sabi, I’m so sorry,” he said, tears breaking free from his own eyes as he pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her with her head tucking into the crook of his neck. “I was an idiot and afraid of admitting how much I still love you.”

The words had slipped out of his mouth before he could stop them and they both froze. Slowly her head rose to meet his gaze, her eyes searching his for any doubt. “You love me?” she asked, her voice thick with emotion.

“Of course I do,” he finally admitted. “Sabi, I never stopped loving you.”

“Oh, Bill!” Sabrina sobbed. “I love you, too!”

Her arms snaked under his to wrap around his midsection and their lips met, both of them pouring every ounce of love into the action as they could until they were breathless with their foreheads resting together.

“Stay with me tonight,” Bill said. “We’ve so much to talk about and I don’t want to put it off anymore. No matter how long it takes. I need you to be mine again.”

“I need that, too.”

Their lips met again and he started to pull her back to the couch. However, the phone ringing shrilly from the kitchen had their mouths reluctantly pulling apart.

“Do you need to get that?” Sabrina asked. “It’s pretty late for that not to be important.”

Bill threw his head back and groaned in agitation; he knew she was right. “I’ll be right back.” He gave her a quick kiss before he hurried to the phone and roughly grabbed the receiver from its holder. “Hello?” he practically growled.

“Bill, it’s Jake. Is everything alright?”

“Yes, but I’m a little busy. What do you need?”

There was a short pause on the other end of the line before Jake spoke again. “Bill, I’m sorry, but I need you to come in.”

“Why?!” Bill demanded.

“I don’t want to talk about it over the phone. Can you please just get down here?”

“Jake,” Bill sighed. “Sabi is here. Is there any possible way this can wait until the morning?”

“I’m sorry, it can’t. I need you in my office as soon as possible.”

Bill cursed under his breath before he responded. “Fine! Give me a few to get dressed and I’ll be on my way.”

“Thanks…And Bill…Brina’s not to come with you.”

“Uh… OK?” Bill’s frustration was quickly giving way to curiosity at his boss’ request, but judging by his tone, decided it best not to ask. “I’ll see you in a few.” 

Bill hung up the phone and turned to make his way back into the living room where he found Sabrina fully clothed again and gathering his clothes for him. She stopped upon his entrance to bring her gaze to his and he saw the disappointment in her features.

"You have to go, don't you?" she asked and forced a smile when he nodded. "It's OK, Bill. I understand. I'll just go to Stanley's—"

"No!" he said, quickly crossing the room to her and pulling her into his arms. "I mean, please don't go. Stay here and we'll talk when I get back."

"Bill, you're gonna have to sleep sometime."

"Then I wanna sleep next to you. Please, Sabi, stay here."

A genuine smile crossed her lips and she kissed his. "I'll stay."

"Thank you," he said and pressed his lips to hers once more. "I'll be back as soon as possible."

* * *

Bill hadn't bothered putting on another uniform; he just threw on the jeans and t-shirt he had been wearing along with his police coat and headed out the door. It was after one in the morning now and Jake would just have to deal with it—it wasn't like Jake  _ ever _ wore a uniform anyway, so there really wasn't anything he could say. However, walking into the atmosphere of the sheriff's office told him clothing wasn't going to be an issue.

Jake was seated behind his desk, leaning back in his chair with a grim look in his eyes and staring at a blue piece of paper on his desk. Beck, the only one in uniform, was standing next to him, his hands braced on the desk with his head hanging low. Jimmy was in his street clothes, seated beside Gray in front of Jake's desk and both held expressions that matched the sheriff's. None of the three even seemed to notice when Bill walked through the door. What the hell had happened?

"What's going on?" Bill asked, realizing he really didn't want the answer when the others turned their attention to him, and he finally saw the gut-wrenching look in Beck's eyes. 

He was met with silence for a moment before Jake cleared his throat and stood, grabbing the piece of paper on his desk before he walked over to Bill. "Beck found the remaining fifteen Jericho citizens he's been searching for…Twelve of them are dead."

"Dammit!" Bill grumbled, running a hand down his face. His heart broke for the families that would soon learn that their loved ones would never be coming home again. "When do we need to start informing the families?"

"They were soldiers," Beck said, righting his posture. "And they deserve the respect that entails. My men and I will personally go to each family to let them know and help in any way we can. Then tomorrow night we will go and retrieve the remains ourselves. The army has been cremating the bodies of unclaimed soldiers after a certain amount of time to ensure that they all eventually make it home. We should be able to bring everyone back in one trip." He paused, glancing at Jake. "But there is one…"

Jake looked straight into Bill's eyes and he could see the pain in them. "Jake?"

"There's one you and I need to take care of," Jake said gravely.

He handed Bill the piece of paper in his hand and the undersheriff's stomach twisted into knots when he realized it was a list of the dead. He read each name carefully, grieving for the lives lost to the war, but it was the last name on the list that made his blood run cold, and tears sting at the corners of his eyes. He read the name over and over again like it would somehow make the name change, but the black ink just seemed to glow brighter every time his eyes swept over the name.

_ Ian Richmond _

How was he supposed to tell Sabrina that she would never see her dad again?

* * *

After quite a bit of deliberation, it was decided that Jake and Bill would go straight from city hall to break the news to Sabrina. Jimmy and Gray had stayed behind with Beck to get him the addresses of the people he needed to visit once the sun rose, which left Bill and Jake walking out of the building by themselves. 

It didn't take a rocket scientist to know that there was something more than the current task brewing just below the surface of Jake's mind. He hadn't said a word since the two men walked out of his office. However, when they reached Bill's truck parked next to his car, he turned to his undersheriff with a protective glare leveled at him. 

"What happened between you two tonight?" Jake demanded, his tone sharp like a razor blade.

"What?" Bill asked, taken aback by the anger directed toward him.

"Between you and Brina. You said she was at your house. I swear to God, Bill! If she is already crying when I get there because of you—"

"We were starting to work things out when you called, Jake," Bill said. He wanted to be mad at Jake's assumption, but he understood the sheriff had a right to be protective of the woman who was like a sister to him. Especially when he had to tell her what he did. 

"So…are you two back together?"

"I…uh…" Bill stuttered, unsure of how to answer. "I don't really know. We both said that's what we wanted and we said we loved each other…"

"Well, at least you're on the right track finally," Jake said, walking over to his car’s driver's side. He paused before he opened the door and his eyes met Bill's again, this time full of anguish for what he knew was coming. "She's gonna need you."

_ Dust flew into the air when Bill peeled into Stanley's driveway just as the farmer was running down his porch steps. Stanley was opening the passenger's side door before Bill had even come to a full stop and he was speeding off again as soon as the door was closed. _

_ "Did you get a hold of Jake?" Bill asked, eyes trained on the road and fighting every urge in his body to slam his gas pedal to the floor.  _

_ He had to get to her. _

_ "Yeah, he's on his way to the airport. He managed to snag the last seat on a flight that leaves in three hours." Stanley paused, swallowing hard. "Have you heard anything more?" _

_ "She was still in surgery when Sabi asked me to go get you. It's not looking good though. Doctor said her skull is fractured pretty bad, they aren't sure if they'll be able to stop the swelling." _

_ "Fuck!" Stanley shouted, scrubbing his face with his hands. _

_ Bill could see the tears in his eyes and to be honest, he wanted to shed a few himself, but Sabrina and Stanley needed him to be strong. He knew his best friend was reliving what he went through when his own parents were taken from him by a car crash and with Sabrina close to losing her mother by the same instance, Stanley looked on the brink of losing it. _

_ Bill took a deep breath, increasing his speed in order to get them to Rogue River Hospital where Sabrina and her dad were anxiously awaiting news on her mother. The drive seemed to take forever but finally, Bill and Stanley were running through the halls of the hospital towards the surgical waiting area where Sabrina and Ian were waiting. They skidded to a stop when they saw the surgeon, wringing a surgical mask in his hands with a grim look on his face. _

_ And then Sabrina collapsed to her knees. _

_ "NOOOOO!" she screamed. _

_ Ian was pale as he knelt down to try and console his daughter. Bill didn't think, just surged forward, dropping to his knees beside his girlfriend, Ian letting him pull her into his arms where she sobbed uncontrollably into his chest, her body shaking while she gasped for air between the tears. _

_ Bill turned searching eyes to the man next to him, silently praying that the news wasn't what was so painfully obvious. But the tears falling down Ian's face told him everything he didn't want to know. _

_ Sabrina's mom was gone. _

"I know, Jake," Bill said, moving towards his truck. "I'll be right by her side the whole time."

Jake nodded and with that, they both got into their vehicles and started on their way to Bill's house.

* * *

Bill and Jake walked in silence up the stairs that connected to Bill’s porch, both with the same look of dread burned into their features. There was no turning back now. Sabrina was just on the other side of the front door with no idea that her world was about to come crashing down around her. 

Bill reached out with his keys to unlock the door, but Jake's hand on his shoulder stopped his action and he turned to give him a quizzical look.

"How are we gonna do this?" Jake asked, his voice a whisper.

Bill took a deep breath and exhaled slowly while he came up with his answer. "Together."

With a slight nod of agreement between them, Bill unlocked his door and they entered. Sabrina was asleep, curled up on the couch under a blanket Bill kept draped over the back of the piece of furniture. He quietly shut the door, both he and Jake removing and hanging their coats on the hook by the door. Jake followed as Bill made his way over and knelt down beside where she laid.

"Sabi," Bill said softly, carding his fingers affectionately through her hair and feeling an immeasurable amount of guilt from having to wake her from what appeared to be a peaceful sleep. "Baby, I need you to wake up."

Sabrina stirred, her eyes fluttering open and giving him a sleepy smile when she registered his presence. "You're back," she said happily, but her mood turned confused when she saw Jake standing behind him. "What's going on?"

"We need to talk to you, Brina," Jake said, making her nervous when he wouldn't meet her gaze.

"OK?" she said, pulling herself to sit up.

Bill adjusted himself to sit on the edge of the couch next to her, taking her hand in his while Jake took a seat in the armchair next to the couch. She looked back and forth between them and Bill could see the fear creeping into her eyes.

"Brina…" Jake started, his voice trailing away while he gathered his nerve. "Beck found the rest of the missing Jericho residents."

"OK…" she said slowly. "That's a good thing, right?"

"Yes and no," Bill continued, his voice somber. "Twelve of them didn't survive."

He could see the wheels in her head start to turn as she started to connect the dots of what they were trying to tell her. 

"No," she croaked, tears welling in her eyes and making her voice crack. "Please tell me my dad wasn't one of the twelve!"

Bill fought back his own tears, squeezing her hand and hanging his head. "I'm so sorry, baby!"

His head snapped up when she jerked her hand from his and stood, walking to the middle of the room with her arms wrapped around herself like she was afraid she was going to physically fall apart. Both Jake and Bill jumped to their feet, hesitant to move closer.

"No, it's not true," Sabrina insisted, her eyes darting around the room as tears started to fall. "Beck is wrong! I need to talk to Beck! He missed something!"

She started quickly moving towards the door and Bill and Jake surged forward. Jake reached her first, trying to wrap his arms around her. 

"NO!" she screamed violently, pushing him away. "IT'S NOT TRUE! HE'S COMING HOME! HE PROMISED ME!!!" She sank to the floor, sitting on her knees while sobs started to rack her body. "He promised he would meet me here!"

Bill took his cue then, pushing past Jake to drop down beside her and pull her into his arms. Her hands fisted desperately in his shirt, sobs turning into wails. He held her tightly, running his hand along her back soothingly and knowing the only thing he could do at the moment was hold onto her while she fell apart. 

Eventually, Jake joined them on the ground, wrapping his arm around her where he could and resting his forehead on her shoulder blade.

And that's where the three of them stayed, neither man rushing the girl breaking to pieces between them to calm her sobbing. Right now she needed to scream and cry, and they would both be there to catch every tear.

* * *

It was three in the morning before Sabrina had calmed enough for her to let Bill and Jake move her back to the couch. Nearly another hour passed before she had finally curled up and fallen asleep, tucked into Bill's side with his arm around her. Jake watched the two of them from the opposite end of the couch, grateful that they had managed to at least start to work through things before she had gotten the news of her father's passing. He was certain that he wouldn't have been able to get his friend through the past couple hours without the man she was still clinging to even in her sleep.

"You OK?" Bill asked, keeping his voice low as to not wake the sleeping woman under his arm.

Jake sighed and let his head drop to the back of the couch. "Honestly? I have no idea. The past twenty-four hours have thrown me for a loop."

"No kidding," Bill said flatly. He checked the time on his wristwatch and groaned inwardly. "We have to be at work in an hour and a half."

"You don't," Jake corrected.

"Jake, I'm not leaving you to deal with this day alone. It's gonna be hell when Beck starts making his rounds."

"Which is exactly why I want you with her," Jake said, raising his head to meet Bill's gaze. "I need to know she's taken care of so I can focus on the town, and with Stanley in Hoxie, you're the only person I trust to do that."

Bill simply nodded his agreement. He really didn't want to leave Sabrina in the first place. Then a thought occurred to him. "We have to tell Stanley."

"I know," Jake sighed. "He and Mimi will be back tonight. I'll tell them then."

They sat in silence for a few more minutes before Jake managed to drag himself up from Bill's couch. The two men said their farewells, and the sheriff quietly let himself out, locking the door as he did.

Bill waited until he was sure Sabrina was in a deep sleep and then slowly and carefully maneuvered himself around so he could pick her up in a bridal style hold. He carried her up the stairs and into his bedroom, lying her down softly on his bed and covering her with a blanket before he crawled in with her and pulled her back into his embrace.

* * *

Sabrina's slumber had been plagued by nightmares of mushroom clouds, war, car wrecks, and death, but every time the visions started to get too intense a pair of arms reached out to pull her into their safe haven. Arms that were still wound around her when she opened her eyes. The solid warmth of Bill and the steady rise and fall of his chest against her back grounded her, letting her know the terrible images were over, at least for now.

It took her a moment to realize they weren't on his couch anymore but cuddled together under a blanket in his bed. She didn't remember going upstairs and knew that he had to have carried her there once she had fallen asleep on him. However, she was more than certain neither of them had slept well. She remembered waking up or being woken up multiple times when the nightmares got too bad. Bill had been there every time, holding her close and speaking words of comfort until she drifted off.

She really wanted to let him sleep, but she could already feel the fresh sting of tears pricking at her eyes when the nightmares started to fill her waking thoughts. It seemed unreal that her dad wasn't coming home. They had both been so hopeful about the outcome of the war.

_ "Brina!" _

_ Jake's excited voice rang through the army tent where Sabrina was packing medical supplies and getting them ready to head out with the first wave of soldiers who were going to take on the ASA. She turned to her friend when he burst through the entryway, wearing an even bigger smile on his face than the one that she’d seen when they’d first reunited in that Texas hospital just two months prior.  _

_ "What's going on, Jake?" she asked, returning his grin. _

_ "The new recruits are here! They are on their way to Amarillo with the rest of the soldiers, but I think there is one you need to see," Jake explained quickly. _

_ For a brief moment, her heart fluttered at the chance of it being Bill, but her logical mind quickly reminded her that Beck had personally asked for him and the rest of the Jericho rangers to help him fortify Western Kansas and eventually the whole state. So, who could it be? Then it dawned on her and she couldn't stop her feet from running past Jake and out of the tent. _

_ There he was. _

_ Standing just outside waiting for Jake's cue to come in—that he had never gotten because of Sabrina’s sudden realization and not being able to wait to see him—was Sabrina’s father. Ian's smile could have eclipsed the sun when his daughter sprinted into his arms and buried her face in his chest. They both cried unashamedly for a few minutes before either could speak. _

_ "I was so afraid I'd lost you," Ian choked out. _

_ Sabrina chuckled through her tears. "I'm your daughter. I'm too stubborn to go down without a fight." _

_ They spent the little time Ian had before he left for the war together, catching up and making plans for the future. _

_ "So you're really gonna come back home?" Ian asked. They had found an out of the way corner to talk and were sitting on empty wooden crates. _

_ "I am," Sabrina said. "I had been trying before all of this happened." _

_ "Is there a certain deputy that has something to do with this choice?" _

_ Sabrina chuckled and shook her head. "I hope it ends up being that way." _

_ "I think it will. I firmly believe the two of you still love each other. _

_ Time passed too quickly and before either knew it, the Humvees were loaded and it was time to move out. Sabrina clung to her father as long as she could and Ian sent a look in Jake's direction, pleading with the younger man to look after his daughter. A request Jake agreed to with a simple nod. _

_ "We'll be together again soon!" Ian reassured her. "I'll meet you in Jericho as soon as all this is over!" _

_ "Promise?" Sabrina croaked. _

_ "I promise." _

Sabrina did the best she could to repress the sob threatening to spill from her lips now that fresh tears were steadily falling from her eyes again, but in turn, it caused her body to start shaking once more. Bill stirred instantly like he had been expecting to be awoken this way and cemented the idea that he hadn't slept well. 

"Hey, baby," he said softly, his hold on her tightening and his face coming up to nuzzle hers. "I got you. It's OK."

"You should have left me on the couch," she said, reaching up to wipe her eyes.

"Why?!" He sounded truly perplexed by her suggestion and it brought the tiniest bit of an upward curve to her lips.

"Because I kept you awake."

"It wasn't that bad," he said with a shrug. "I still got to sleep next to you and hold you like I wanted."

"This isn't exactly how I envisioned getting to wake up with you again would be like. I'm sorry."

"Sabi, don't apologize. I'm glad I was able to be here for you."

"I am, too," she said and turned in his arms to slide her own around his middle and tuck her head under his chin. "Is Jake still here?"

"No, he left sometime after four to head back into work."

Work! It hadn't even dawned on her that the light illuminating the bedroom was sunlight until just then and she shot up to a sitting position to locate the clock on Bill's nightstand. It was eleven in the morning! "Bill! We're late for work!"

"No, we're not," he said, pushing himself up to sit as well. "Jake gave us the day off."

"Oh," she said, moving her legs into a lotus position and folding her hands in her lap. She thought about what Jake must be dealing with at the moment and her heart clenched in her chest for the other eleven families that were receiving bad news that day. "When are they going to start letting people know?"

"Beck and his men were going to start this morning," Bill informed her. "They are leaving tonight to go get the remains and bring them home."

"Where are they?" Her eyes were trained on her lap, an idea entering her mind that she knew Bill wouldn't like.

"I heard him mention Columbus before Jake and I left." He moved to sit a little straighter and placed a hand over both of hers. "You want to go with him, don't you?"

Tears fell from her eyes again as she forced herself to look at him. "I need to, Bill."

Bill didn't hesitate to pull her into his arms. "I know. Just promise you'll come back to me. I can't lose you again."

"I promise," she said, voice thick with tears. "I can't lose you either."

"Then let's get ready and go talk to Beck."

Sabrina nodded, tucking her head into the crook of his neck and letting his warmth surround her. "I love you, Bill."

"I love you, too, Sabi."


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: Smut

It was late afternoon before Sabrina and Bill had been able to get a meeting with Beck, but when they did he didn't seem surprised to see Sabrina. He respectfully offered his condolences when she and Bill walked into the department and then led them into Jake's office so the three of them could speak privately with the sheriff.

Sabrina had jumped in immediately with stating the reason for their meeting, and while Beck had a few reservations, he agreed to let her go with him. They discussed how the trip would go and how long they would be gone. Beck made sure to promise Bill and Jake that he would look out for Sabrina and ensure no harm of any kind came to her. 

With the decision made, Beck and Sabrina set up a time to meet for after Stanley and Mimi would return home and then she and Bill left city hall in route to the Richmond farm to pack her clothes for the trip. 

"Are you sure you're OK with this?" Sabrina asked, staring at her hands folded together in her lap where she sat in the passenger's seat of Bill's truck. 

"Yes," he said without hesitation. "I understand why you need to do this."

"Thank you"

He glanced at her with a smile then, reaching over to lace their fingers together so he could bring her hand up to his lips for a kiss. His eyes focused back on the road, but their hands stayed intertwined, resting on the bench style seat between them. 

The contact made her smile. She had missed him so much and her leaving, even just for a few days, put a pit in her stomach. She had completely broken into pieces when she found out about her father, and just like with her mother, he had been there to pick up the pieces. Being in his arms had helped her more than she was sure he realized and she really wanted to be there again.

He cast a curious glance at her when she pulled her hand away and unbuckled her seatbelt, but his grin returned when she scooted across the seat. Realizing what she wanted, he lifted his arm and she tucked herself into his side as he wrapped it around her.

"You should really be wearing that seatbelt in the middle there," Bill said. He loved having her pressed against him but being a deputy was ingrained into him at this point, and it was the law for a reason. However, her fingers trailing back and forth over his torso were starting to fan a fire in his belly.

"I'll put it on in a minute, Undersheriff Koehler."

The husky way his title rolled off her tongue did things to him he wasn't expecting and his arm tightened around her shoulders to pull her closer. But it was the tip of her nose moving along his jawline to that sensitive spot behind his ear where she placed a kiss that sent a shiver through his body and had his cock beginning to harden in his jeans.

"Ya know," she whispered in his ear, her hand dropping down to caress his inner thigh and purposely not comimh in contact with his growing bulge. "When I was in here with you yesterday morning, the only thing I could think about was all those times we got tangled up together in the backseat." 

Bill was gripping the steering wheel so tight his hand was starting to hurt, doing his damndest to focus on the road ahead of him while Sabrina's lips ghosted down to his pulse point, her tongue slipping out to lavish the spot before slowly kissing her way back up to his ear. She knew exactly what buttons to push to make him a panting mess and she was well on her way to getting him there pretty fast.

"Y-yeah," he managed to croak out. "My mind was th- _ ERE…!" _ She took his earlobe into her mouth, sucking and flicking her tongue and he forgot the rest of his sentence. Now all he could think about was her hot mouth wrapped around his cock.

Her fingers came up to trace the outline of his now fully erect shaft through the fabric of his jeans and he had to fight to keep his attention on the road, groaning against her touch. He almost couldn't breathe when she popped the button on his pants and pushed down the zipper. He had to focus extra hard on keeping his truck in between the lines on the road when she slipped her hand inside his boxers to pull out his throbbing member and started pumping him slowly.

"You might wanna take us to our old spot by the lake," she suggested, pulling a deep moan from him when her thumb swirled over his tip. "Cos I'm about to make you come in my mouth."

Before her words could even compute in his brain, she was bending down and taking as much of his cock into her mouth as she could.

"Oh, fuck! Sabi!" he moaned loudly. His now free hand flew to the steering wheel, gripping it for all its worth.

God, it felt so good! Her hot, wet mouth bobbing up and down on his shaft, her tongue working absolute magic with every flick and swirl. Fuck! She was so good at this and he wanted to watch while she made him come undone for her. He also wanted to make her do the same. Her suggestion finally entered back into his mind and he turned his truck onto one of the back roads, getting to that lake as fast as he could.

It was all he could do to put his truck into park by the time he got to a secluded spot by the lake. His dick was so far into Sabrina's mouth he could feel the back of her throat and she was swallowing around him, sending a string of filth flowing from his lips. She was so close to pushing him over that edge and he was trying to hold back with everything he had. He still wanted to watch her.

Finally being able to use both hands, one went to push the hair away from her face, wrapping it in his fingers so he had a clear view of his shaft going in and out of her mouth. He groaned at the sight, her whole body moving sensually, eyes closed as she savored every inch of him. His other hand found her ass, massaging and kneading her flesh for a moment before he slipped his finger between her legs and started to rub her mound through her jeans, pulling a moan from her that sent vibrations all the way through him. His hips involuntarily bucked. Fuck, he was so close! He just needed…

Sabrina hollowed out her cheeks, creating suction, and started moving her head at a pace that had Bill's fingers tightening in her hair and moving faster between her legs. She moaned again and that was it.

"SABI!! OH FUCK! SABI BABY!!" he shouted, his head falling back.

His release was body shaking and he could feel her swallowing down every drop of his hot seed shooting into the back of her throat, her ministrations not stopping until he started to go soft.

His head was still spinning when he felt her move her head from his lap and capture his lips with hers. He could still taste himself on her tongue and his arms wrapped around her instantly, one of his hands weaving into her hair as he maneuvered their bodies to lay her down across the seat. His mouth moved to her neck, kissing and nipping at the spots he knew would have her moaning his name.

She whined at the loss of contact when he raised to his knees, but quickly realized what he was doing when his fingers fell to start opening the fastener of her jeans. Her hips lifted to help him pull them down and she scooted up to a sitting position to allow him to pull them along with her panties off and throw them to the ground. He dropped to the floorboard, turning her body to face him and pull her ass to the edge of the seat. In one swift movement, he spread her legs and dove between them, groaning at the taste of her slick almost dripping out of her.

"Oh, God! Bill!" she keened. A shiver went through her body and her hands tangled in his hair.

He started out slow, using the tip of his tongue to trace her folds and dip teasingly into her entrance, lapping up her juices and taking his time to reacquaint himself with the spots and moves that had her panting and writhing beneath him. 

"Bill! Please!" she begged, her hips bucking up into him.

He chuckled and the vibration made her shudder and throw her head back, his name tumbling from his lips. And just like that, he remembered how much he loved to make her just like this: moaning his name, her body reacting so intensely to his every move, winding her up until she was about to snap. However, he loved making her scream while she came for him even more, and his renewed erection agreed with him.

He moved his lips to wrap around her swollen clit, sucking and flicking the little bundle of nerves and inserting two fingers into her slick channel.

"OH FUCK!! AH! AH! OH MY GOD, BILL! DON'T STOP! PLEASE DON'T STOP!"

Bill redoubled his efforts, devouring her like a man starved and adding a third finger to pump fast and hard into her.

"BILL!!" she screamed. "Fuck! Bill! Oh, baby yes! YES! BABY I'M GONNA… BIIIILLLL!!!!"

Her orgasam crashed over her, sending her into the stratosphere screaming his name and making her whole body shake with her release. His motions didn't stop until he was sure he had gotten her through the high and his mouth was on hers again a second later, their arms winding around one another with the tip of his cock teasing at her entrance.

"Be mine again, Sabi?" he asked, looking deep into her eyes and panting again when their kiss ended. There was still so much they needed to talk through, but he knew in his heart that there wasn't anything that could tear them apart again.

"I've always been yours, Bill," she said, caressing his jaw line with her fingertips.

He thrust into her, and they both cried out at the connection both of them only then realizing how much they needed this moment to just be together and as close as possible. His movements were slow and sensual, their gazes locked as they clung to each other. Their bodies moved together in sync, the tempo picking up as they neared another release with the truck rocking and windows fogging up, the cab filling with the sounds of pleasure and, finally, their shouts of each other's name when another body shaking orgasm crashed over them.

A few minutes later found them with their clothes righted, sitting and cuddled together in the front seat with Sabrina nestled between Bill's outstretched legs and resting her back against his chest while he leaned against the passenger's side door. Her head laid back onto his shoulder, arms covering his which were wrapped snugly around her midsection. He nuzzled her face and peppered her skin with kisses.

"I'm gonna miss you," Bill said. "I wish I could go with you."

"I'm gonna miss you, too, but you can't leave Jake right now. The department is already short handed and with Calvin out for the next two weeks it's gonna be worse."

"Yeah, I know."

Sabrina didn't miss the disdain in Bill's voice nor the way his arms tightened possessively over her middle. She turned her head to raise a questioning brow at him.

"Sorry, I still may be a little jealous of him," Bill admitted.

"What? Why?"

"I know it's ridiculous considering everything that's happened, but seeing you on a date with someone else nearly killed me. Then I went and was just a complete asshole to you." His face buried into the crook of her neck as guilt washed over him. "I'm so sorry, baby."

"Hey," Sabrina said comfortingly, raising her hand and placing it on the side of his face. He peeked his eyes up to look at her. "We both made a lot of mistakes. I never should have left the way I did. I shouldn't have let so much time go by without you hearing from me."

"I never should have went out with Macy Thompson."

Sabrina's hand fell back to where it had previously rested over his, his words slowly sinking in. "How…?"

"Stanley told me when he came after me on Valentine's Day about you coming back and seeing me with her. Sabi baby, she was just a rebound. All I could think about was you, and being without you was killing me! I had to do something to try and get over you."

"Bill, you don't have to explain yourself to me for that. I understand. I didn't like it, but I knew you had to move on."

"Yeah, well, it didn't turn out too well with Macy," Bill revealed. "I ended up calling her by your name while we were making out."

"Oh, Bill! You didn't!" Sabrina said, not being able to suppress a small chuckle.

"I did. She smacked me and left after that. I felt terrible and tried to apologize, but she didn't want to hear it. Don't really blame her."

"Don't feel too bad," Sabrina told him. "I attempted to date this guy in California—his name was Sam— and I ended up doing the same thing. Things ended pretty quickly after that."

The conversation continued with tears and smiles, apologizing to each other for the pain they had caused with their words and actions. They told one another about the failed relationships they had encountered, how their friends never stopped trying to make them open their eyes, and finally said everything they had been needing to say for years. 

Towards the end they revealed what had happened on that Valentine's Day before he had shown up at the Richmond farm. She told him about applying to Colby Community College as soon as she had the credentials and the resumé to stand a chance in claiming the position at the school and how she had wanted to come home and try to get him back all along. She finished by explaining how Calvin had gone there, ultimately causing Gauge to show up at the police department the day before. 

Bill didn’t tell her how he had planned to propose to her the day she’d left. He still hoped to have the chance to use the ring he had tucked away for her someday.

With everything finally said and forgiveness given, both felt lighter, like weights had been lifted from their chests. Their future together was materializing again, and with the wisdom gained from growing older, they knew this time they weren't letting go.

"I guess I should thank Calvin," Bill mused.

Sabrina nodded her agreement. "We should also thank Stanley, Mimi, Jake, Emily, and Jimmy. I'm pretty sure Mimi and Stanley knew I would get stuck at your house during that snowstorm."

"Oh, I know they did," Bill agreed with a laugh. After a beat, he decided there was one more thing left to address. "Ya know, I bought that house because I couldn't stand the thought of someone else living in the house you wanted, and if I'm being completely honest…there was a part of me that never gave up hope that one day you would come home. I know we are only just starting again, but when we're ready, I still want that."

Sabrina smiled brightly, turning to face him, sitting on her knees between his legs. Her hands framed his face and his fell to her hips. "I want that, too," she said and pressed their lips together.

* * *

The sun had already begun to set when Stanley drove up to his house with Mimi beside him. An instant streak of anger went through the farmer upon seeing Bill's black Dodge parked out front and he immediately wanted answers.

"What the hell is he doing here alone with her?!" Stanley demanded. "I told him to stay away from her until he figured his shit out!"

"Maybe he did," Mimi said. "Where's Brina's truck?"

"Do you really think they worked things out in a day and a half?!" Stanley groused, putting his vehicle in park and getting out.

Mimi followed his actions and her brows shot up at hearing the muffled, yet undeniable, sound of Bill's name being said rather loudly and in a very,  _ very _ happy tone. She turned to Stanley with a smirk that quickly faded when she saw him stalking towards the stairs, clearly not hearing what she had in his agitated state.

"Stanley!" she called, running over to him and grabbing his arm just before he placed his foot on the first step. "You don't want to do that! Give them a minute!"

"Yes! I do! Bill's getting another piece of my mind!" Stanley snapped, jerking away from his wife and striding up the stairs.

"Suit yourself," Mimi sighed, placing her hands on her hips and hoping Bill and Sabrina were at least covered with the blanket she kept on the back of the couch.

They weren't.

Mimi watched Stanley barge into the house and listened as the screaming match erupted.

"OH MY GOD!! WHAT THE… WHAT ARE… FUCK… WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Stanley shouted.

"WHAT THE HELL DOES IT LOOK LIKE?!" Bill yelled back.

"GIVE US A DAMN MINUTE!" Sabrina demanded.

The shouting went on for a few more seconds, in which time Mimi noticed Jake pulling up in a police cruiser and she waved at him happily. The sheriff exited his car and walked over to her just as Stanley slammed the front door and stomped down the stairs crimson faced with a mix of rage and embarrassment conflicting in his features.

"What's wrong, Stanley?" Jake asked.

"I just saw Bill's ass!" Stanley snapped.

"I tried to tell you!" Mimi reminded him, folding her arms over her chest. "Consider yourself lucky that's all you saw!"

Jake didn't even try to hold back his bark of laughter. "Yeah, they started working things out last night."

Stanley's mood instantly flipped and a grin overtook his face. "Seriously?! Are they back together?!"

"Bill wasn't entirely sure on that point when I talked to him last night."

"Either way!" Mimi said excitedly. "They're finally on the right track!"

"Yeah, it's great…" Jake's mood sombered as he remembered why he was there. "But that's not why I'm here."

Mimi and Stanley shared a worried glance at the sight of their friend's pained look.

"What's going on?" Stanley asked.

"We should probably talk inside for that." The trio turned to see Bill standing at the top of the stairs, now fully clothed. "And yes, we're back together."

* * *

Stanley and Sabrina sat around the kitchen table at the Richmond farm house. Both had red rimmed eyes and were clutching mugs of hot coffee in their hands. Together, Bill and Jake had gone through the bad news again. Sabrina had clung to Bill, Stanley to Mimi, but in the end the Richmond cousins needed a minute with just the two of them. It had led to Bill and Jake helping Mimi bringing in her and Stanley's bags and then taking the duffle Sabrina had packed to his truck. Neither activity was by any means a group project, however they understood the need for the two to have a moment to themselves.

"Are you OK?" Stanley asked Sabrina. He really didn't know what else to say.

"I'm better than I was. Bill and Jake helped with that. Especially Bill. He's been the only thing holding me together today."

"I'm really glad he was there and that you two are finally back together, even if I do have to burn my couch now."

Sabrina chuckled at the jab. "I'm not even sorry for that, but it's not like you saw anything but Bill's ass before he pulled the blanket over us. Just be glad you didn't barge in a minute earlier."

Stanley cringed and shook his whole body to clear his mind of the thoughts. "When are you supposed to meet Beck?" He needed to change the subject.

"Midnight. We should be in Columbus by tomorrow afternoon that way."

"When are you coming home?"

"It depends on how long everything takes, but Beck is hoping we will be heading out the next day."

Stanley blew out a puff of air through his lips. "Are you sure it's safe? I mean, I know the war is over, but there are still crazy people out there stuck in a lawless state of mind."

"Beck wouldn't let me go if he didn't think it was safe, and he promised Bill and Jake he would watch my back."

"I'm still not thrilled about it, but I understand." Stanley glanced up to the clock on the microwave. "It's only a little after eight. You still have a few hours. You should probably spend them with Bill."

Sabrina raised an amused brow. "You're OK with this now? You were ready to kill him on Valentine's Day."

"I've always been cool with you two being together," Stanley stated. "It was Bill being a giant dick that I had an issue with." He paused for a moment. "I should probably tell you that he knows you saw him with Macy."

"I know. We've talked through everything already."

"You're not mad that I told him?"

"No, I know why you did."

Stanley smiled, truly happy that his cousin and best friend had found their way back to each other. "It's about time you two figured it out. Now go on, spend some time with him before you have to go."

* * *

The time had passed too quickly for either Bill or Sabrina's liking, and taking her to meet Beck and his men in front of city hall had been exceptionally hard for him to do. Even if he understood why she needed to do this and knew she was coming back to him, he still hated having to watch her leave.

The two of them stood, clinging to each other as the soldiers finished packing things into the two Humvees they would be taking on the trip. Tears stung their eyes and Bill did his best to kiss Sabrina's away.

"We'll be together again before you know it," he said encouragingly, trying to keep his voice steady. "And I'm sure there will be a phone somewhere there you can use. You know you can call me anytime."

"I know," Sabrina sniffled, burying her face in the crook of his neck. "I'm just gonna miss you."

"I'm gonna miss you, too. So very much!" He raised his hand to tuck two fingers under her chin and gently raised her head to look at him. "But it will make things that much sweeter when you come home." He kissed her tenderly. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

Bill kissed her once more, this time a little more passionately. However, their display of affection was interrupted by the clearing of a throat. They reluctantly broke their kiss and turned to find Beck beside them, looking on them with apologetic eyes.

"I'm sorry, but it's time to go," the major said with remorse.

With one last kiss and embrace, Bill saw Sabrina into the front passenger's seat of the Humvee. Beck shook his hand and again promised Sabrina's safety before he got into the driver's seat.

Bill watched with tears in his eyes as the military vehicles disappeared down Main Street


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We've reached the end! Will Bill and Sabrina get their happy ending?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: Funeral, Smut

One. Whole. Week.

It had been a week since Sabrina had left with Beck and Bill had worked as much as possible to fill his time. She had called after two days to let him know that Beck had run into a paperwork issue with acquiring the remains and that it would take a few days for him to sort it out. However, he hadn't heard from her since. 

Tonight he was restlessly lying on his couch with the TV droning on in the background. Jake had made him take the night and the next day off, insisting that Bill needed some rest. 

Sleep wasn't something he had been able to find though. He had tossed and turned in his bed for hours. The only thing on his mind was Sabrina. He had only held her in his bed once and already it felt too empty without her there. He wasn't looking forward to not working the next day and had already decided to go to Stanley's to see if he needed any help on the farm.

Stanley and Jake weren't doing much better than he was. They both had their significant others to distract them when the days became nights, but they had both thrown themselves into work as well. Stanley was out on the farm from sun up to sun down and Bill was fairly certain the only reason Jake was making him take the time off was because Emily was making him do the same. 

They were all worried about Sabrina. Not because of what still lay in wait on the highways— they knew Beck would protect her no matter what—but the thought of her facing and seeing her father's remains alone, and the fact that they hadn't heard from her in five days, was putting them all on edge.

The phone ringing in Bill's kitchen sparked a glimmer of hope in the man's chest and he sprung up from the couch, hastily making his way to the phone. He grabbed it to answer and prayed he heard the voice he so desperately needed to hear on the other end of the line.

"Hello?"

"Hey, baby."

The sound of Sabrina's voice sent a wave of relief rolling through him that sent him sinking into a chair at the kitchen table. Then his brain registered the tears in her voice and his heart shattered.

"Sabi baby, what's wrong?"

She had to take a deep breath before she answered and Bill would have given anything to have been able to wipe away the tears he knew that were streaming down her face. 

"Beck was finally able to get everyone's remains today. Seeing dad reduced to…to…" her voice broke as it got harder for her to speak. "Bill…I miss him!" 

Her sobs finally broke free and it took everything Bill had to not slam his fist into the table. It wasn't right that she had to do this alone. He should have gone with her, should be there now so at least she was falling apart in his arms.

"I know, baby," he said comfortingly, making sure to hide any other emotion but his love and support for her. "I'm so sorry this happened and I wish to God I could change it."

"I wish you were here. I wanna be in your arms so bad."

"Then I'm on my way," Bill said, standing from his chair. Fuck this. He was going to go be with her where he belonged. Jake would understand.

"Bill, no."

"Why not?! You want me there and I'd give up my badge to be with you."

"Because we're leaving soon. They are packing the Humvees now. I should be back tomorrow afternoon. Beck's taking me to Stanley's so we can bury dad's urn. I just…I needed to hear your voice."

The bittersweet feeling that washed over him was overwhelming. She would finally be with him again the next day and he was ecstatic about that, but they would also have to lay her dad to rest and he knew how hard that was going to be.

"I'll talk to you as long as we can, Sabi," he promised. "Do I need to call Stanley when we're done to let him know?"

"No, Beck called Jake before I called you and let him know. He said he was going over to Stanley's to talk to him." Sabrina paused and Bill heard a male voice that he was sure was Beck’s speaking to her. "Bill, I'm sorry, Beck says he needs to talk to me and it's almost time to leave."

"Sabi baby, you don't have to apologize. I understand. You'll be home soon, my love."

"I can't wait to see you." He could hear the tears in her voice again. “I love you so much."

"I love you, too, baby. More than you know."

They said their reluctant farewells and Bill hung up his phone, only pausing for a second before he was sprinting up to his bedroom to change. He knew exactly what Stanley and Jake would be doing tonight and he was going to help them with it.

* * *

"What did you want to talk to me about?" Sabrina asked, following Beck out to where the Humvees were waiting in front of the large office building the government was using as a base of operations. She noted the young woman with pixie cut blonde hair and green eyes holding a baby that appeared to only be six months old waiting with one of Beck's soldiers. "Who's that?"

Beck stopped and turned to face her, halting her steps as well. "On the way here you told me you wanted to know what happened to your dad."

Sabrina looked at him quizzically, her stomach flip flopping. "Yeah…"

Beck motioned for the woman to join them and she cautiously started walking towards them. "She can tell you."

Sabrina watched the woman, emotions running wild, until she was standing in front of her.

"Hi, Sabrina," she said. "My name is Tara, and this," she gestured to the baby in her arms with a tilt of her head. "This is Leanna."

Sabrina's eyes instantly filled with tears. She knew that name. It was her middle name and her late mother's first name. Still, she had to ask. "Why did you name her that?"

Tara was fighting back tears as she looked into Sabrina's eyes. "I was in Cheyenne when the USA moved in and the ASA took hostages. Your dad was one of the soldiers who came in to save us, but something went wrong and we got cornered in an office building. I was pregnant and freaking out, the ASA had already killed my husband, and Ian sat with me, holding my hand and telling me about the two women he loved most in this world while we waited for the other soldiers with us to break down a wall to get us out. He was so very proud of you, and you could tell your mom was the love of his life. They finally managed to get us a way out and Ian personally saw to it that I got to safety, but then…the ASA descended and he and the other soldiers told us where the rendezvous point was and left to hold them off. If it wasn't for your dad and those other soldiers none of us would have made it. Your father died a hero, Sabrina."

Sabrina couldn't seem to formulate words by the time Tara had finished, but the tears streaming down her face wouldn't have let her speak anyway. Instead, she stepped forward, minding the baby in the other woman's arms, and hugged her.

"Thank you!" Sabrina finally managed to croak out. "Thank you so much."

* * *

Bill arrived at the Richmond farm just as Stanley and Jake were crossing the yard with shovels in hand. Bill jumped out of his truck, grabbed his own shovel, and quickly fell into step with them. Together, they walked up the hill where Stanley's parents, along with Bonnie and Sabrina's mom, were buried. 

No words needed to be spoken; the trio knew where they needed to dig and Stanley instantly broke the ground next to Sabrina's mom, Bill and Jake following suit. It was going to be a long night for the three long time friends, but they all knew that none of them would be leaving until the grave was dug. There would be a funeral tomorrow and they had to be ready for it.

* * *

They dug well into the night and made it as far as Stanley's couch before they fell asleep. They woke to the sounds of Emily and Mimi cooking breakfast in the kitchen and made their way in only to be given the order that they must shower. So they took turns, Bill and Jake borrowing something of Stanley's until Mimi could wash their dirt covered clothes.

Finally, the five of them sat around the table to eat. The meal was mostly silent, all of them lost in thought about what the day would hold. Without any of them needing to suggest it, they all chose to stay close that day, moving into the living room to pass the time that seemed to be moving at a snail's pace.

Around noon, Gail arrived with Eric and Mary. A few minutes later Jimmy showed up with his family and Calvin, each carrying some kind of home cooked dish for the Richmond family. Bill suspected Mimi or Emily had made the calls to bring them all together, because Stanley, Jake, and himself had been too preoccupied the night before to even think about it.

The group gathered together on the front porch once the food was put away for later and they weren't waiting long when they heard the unmistakable sound of a military Humvee driving down the road leading to the farm house. Knowing that they were close, they all made their way up the hill to gather around the freshly dug grave. All except for Bill, who chose to wait in front of the house.

As soon as the military vehicle had come to a stop, Bill was at the passenger's side door and opening it. Sabrina immediately jumped into his arms, her lips connecting with his, and wrapping her arms around his neck and legs around his waist. Sooner than either wanted, Beck and his men were exiting the vehicle and Bill had to place her on her feet.

Beck came around the Humvee and handed a black urn to Sabrina, saluting as he did. Bill linked his arm with hers as they began the walk up the hill with Beck and his men following behind in formation.

It truly touched Sabrina's heart to see the group gathered at the top of the hill. Ian wouldn't have wanted a formal affair with a bunch of people who couldn't even tell you what his favorite color was. All he would have wanted was exactly what was before her: the people that Sabrina and Stanley loved most standing together to say their good-byes. Even still, Sabrina could feel her feet getting heavier the further up the hill they went. The tears were back and she tightened her arm around Bill's. His hand came up to cover hers and on some level she knew he was talking to her, trying his best to comfort her.

The rest of the funeral seemed to move in a strange combination of slow motion and blurs. Stanley, Bill, and Jake said a few words on Ian's strong character and the fond memories they shared with him. Beck spoke of Ian's accomplishments as a soldier, but it was Sabrina that insisted on telling the story of how her father had died a hero and about the beautiful baby girl now named after the loves of his life.

When it was over, the dirt had been replaced and most of the group had moved back to the porch. Sabrina and Stanley stood in the arms of their significant others, gazing down at their family that was now watching over them. It was going to be hard to get over Ian's passing, but the cousins knew they couldn't ask for a better support system.

* * *

Life took on a new normal in the weeks following the funeral. Bill and Sabrina spent most of their time outside of work together and most nights in Bill's bed. It was only on nights that he had to work a night shift did she stay at Stanley's and it was on one of those nights in early May that Gray Anderson showed up to the Richmond farm just after dinner with a hesitant look on his face. Stanley ushered him inside the house with a friendly greeting and the two men gathered in the living room with Mimi and Sabrina.

"What brings you out this evening, Gray?" Stanley asked, sitting down on the couch between Mimi and Sabrina.

Gray held an expression that was hard to read and it made Sabrina a bit nervous. "Well," Gray started, moving to take a seat in the armchair. "I'm actually here to see Sabrina."

Stanley and Sabrina shared a worried look before she motioned for Gray to continue.

"Per Ian's will, you gained ownership of his house," Gray said, his tone ever cautious. It was obvious he knew this was a sensitive subject to broach. "But, it appears you don't intend on living in it."

"What are you getting at Gray?" Sabrina said defensively.

The mayor took a deep breath before he spoke next. "Our housing economy here is finally starting to get back on track. We even have a certified realtor now and—"

"You want me to sell my dad's house."

"Yes."

Sabrina turned to Stanley and Mimi to gauge their reactions and her cousin slipped an arm around her shoulders. 

"It's up to you Brina, but we support you no matter what," Stanley told her.

"And you always have a place here," Mimi added.

Sabrina nodded and turned back to Gray. "Can I have some time to think about it?" 

"Of course!" Gray said. "You know where to find me when you've made your decision."

Gray didn't stay very long after that. Stanley saw him out while Sabrina made her way to the kitchen. She saw the mayor getting back into his vehicle, but then her eyes drifted up the hill to where the Richmond family was buried. Tears pricked her eyes as she tried to figure out what her dad would want.

"He would want you to be happy," Stanley said, entering the kitchen. He knew the look on his cousin's face. His own had held it twice before and he knew the pain behind it.

"I think I need to take a walk to clear my head," Sabrina sighed, turning to her cousin.

Stanley nodded. He could understand needing some space. "OK, but try not to be too long. It'll be dark soon."

* * *

Bill's night had gone on for what felt like forever. It was a completely uneventful night and he and Jimmy spent most of their shift driving around aimlessly. He walked into his house late and more than ready to be there. The only problem was: it was just him.

As he took off his utility belt and placed it and his truck keys on his kitchen table he glanced over to his phone hanging on the wall by the window and then to his watch, wondering if it was too late to call Sabrina and have her come over. It was only ten o'clock and he really wanted her there. The technically living in separate houses thing was getting old fast, but they had just gotten back together barely two months ago; he didn't want to move faster than she was ready for, even if they had both mentioned on more than one occasion that it felt like they had picked up right where they had left off.

Without realizing it, he had already started reaching for the receiver, but he was taken off guard when it started ringing before he touched it. He shook off the surprise quickly and grabbed the phone, bringing it to his ear and hoping it was who he wanted it to be.

"Hello?"

"Bill, it's Stanley. Is Brina there?"

Stanley's tone was urgent and quick and it instantly put Bill on edge. Sabrina was supposed to be at home with her cousin. Where was she?!

"No," Bill replied. "I just got home and was about to call her."

"Dammit!" Stanley growled and Bill was sure he heard his friend hit something. "Gray came by around six asking her if she would sell Uncle Ian's house. She told him that she needed some time to think about it, then after he left she said she needed to take a walk and clear her head. I haven't seen her since Bill! I've been all over the farm, on the back roads, down to the lake. I can't fucking find her and I'm really starting to get worried!"

"Have you called Jake?" Bill asked, trying to remain calm and come up with a plan of action even though just below the surface there were a million terrible and scary thoughts running through his mind.

"Yeah, he and Emily are heading out to look for her now. Calvin is on overnight shift so he and Malone are looking for her too, but since it's not technically a missing persons case, that's all Jake could put on it."

"OK, that's good!" Bill said encouragingly. "I'm gonna go out and look for her, too. I think I may have an idea of where to look. I'll call as soon as I can."

"Thanks, Bill."

With a quick goodbye, Bill hung up his phone, grabbed his truck keys, and ran out the door.

* * *

Bill pulled up to a two story red brick house about ten minutes later. The windows of the house were dark and the driveway empty, yet he had a feeling that didn't mean there wasn't anyone home. Bill got out of his truck and made his way around the house to the back yard and there she was.

Sabrina was sitting under an old oak tree staring up at the bedroom window that used to be hers. There weren't any tears running down her cheeks anymore, but Bill could tell by her red puffy eyes it hadn't been long since there were. His heart ached at the pain he saw etched into her features and he wanted nothing more than to just take it away.

He wordlessly crossed over and sat down next to her. His arm went around her waist and she leaned into him with fresh tears starting to fall. He held her while she cried, rubbing her back, kissing her head, and speaking words of comfort until she had calmed to just sniffles.

"I didn't realize how late it was until I heard your truck," she admitted. "I just needed to think and clear my head."

"Yeah, Stanley called me when I got home from work and he was freaking out. He's got Jake, Emily, Calvin, and Malone out looking for you."

Sabrina groaned and pressed herself closer to Bill. "I'm sorry."

"You're safe, that's all that matters," he said, kissing the top of her head. "Did you figure anything out? He told me about Gray coming by."

"No," Sabrina breathed. "I just don't know what I should do."

"Well you don't have to figure it out tonight. I can take you home and you can sleep on it."

Sabrina scoffed and pulled away to bring her knees to her chest and wrap her arms around them. "That's part of the problem."

"What do you mean?" Bill's stomach twisted at her words and old fears started to creep up. He thought things were good, that they were happy together. Was she regretting coming back to Jericho?

Sabrina sighed, taking a moment to push back the tears threatening to fall again. "I don't have a home here, Bill, and if I'm being completely honest, I don't think I've had one anywhere in a long time. I love Stanley and Mimi and I appreciate them letting me stay with them so much, but the farm is  _ their _ home." She gestured towards her dad's house with her hand. "This place isn't home without Dad. I haven't even been able to bring myself to go in there since I got back to Jericho. The only time I feel at home anywhere is when I'm with you. I dread the nights I don't stay with you."

A bittersweet relief washed over him. He was ecstatic that he gave her that solace, but the fact that she needed it in the first place tore at him in ways he couldn't express. Especially when he lived in the place that was supposed to be  _ their _ home. He didn't even have to think about the next words that came out of his mouth.

"Then let's fix that," he said, standing and holding out his hand to her.

She looked up at him with confusion creasing her brow. "What?"

"Come home with me, Sabi, and stay there."

"Really?" she replied, the tears she had been fighting starting to fall. "Are you sure?"

"I've never been more sure. We belong together in the home we wanted to have  _ together. _ "

"Oh, Bill!" Sabrina cried, jumping to her feet and throwing her arms around his neck. His hands slid around her back when she captured his lips in a deep and passionate kiss.

They were both smiling when their lips parted, gazing into each other's eyes with pure love and adoration and Bill knew there was only one thing left to say. "Let's go home, baby."

* * *

Sabrina moved in the next day and Bill's house became _their_ _home_. Within two weeks she had made the decision to sell Ian's house and together with Bill, Stanley, and Mimi they packed up the sentimental items in the house and sold the rest. Sabrina and Stanley divided the things that were kept between them. Before long, the house was empty and awaiting its new owner.

Bill loved watching Sabrina nest into their home. He never realized just how empty the house was until she started adding touches of herself and their life together. One particular weekend after they had emptied Ian's home and they both had the two days off, he happily helped her hang pictures that Ian had framed in the hallway and into the living room. 

He had just finished putting up the photograph of him and Sabrina at his graduation from the police academy next to the fireplace. A smile tugged at his lips as he remembered shopping for the blue dress she wore. They really did share some amazing memories and now they were making wonderful new ones.

He turned to her and saw her holding up a picture of the two of them and Ian at his cousin's wedding and smiling, clearly remembering the day in detail. Bill crossed over to her and wrapped his arms around her midsection from behind and rested his chin on her shoulder.

"You both looked so handsome in those suits," she cooed, raising her hand to thread it into his hair.

"We were both so uncomfortable, too," Bill teased playfully. "But your dad and I had a good conversation and…well…getting to take that dress off of you at the end of the night made wearing that suit worth it."

She giggled when he started kissing her neck and laid the photo on the side table next to the couch so she could turn in his arms and kiss his lips.

"I have an idea," Bill said.

"What's that?"

"I say we've done enough decorating today and we should reward ourselves by cuddling on the couch and watching a movie together."

"Hmm…" Sabrina hummed, intertwining her fingers behind his neck. "How much of that movie are you planning on actually watching?"

"Honestly, probably none," he admitted, dipping his head to pepper her neck with kisses again. "I have bigger plans of watching you come on my tongue."

She tilted her head to the side, giving him easier access to her sensitive skin. "Then maybe we should not watch that movie in our bed."

"Mmm, I like the way you think," he said, raising his head to kiss her lips once more. "You head on up and I'll grab that movie and a couple drinks."

"Sounds good."

They parted with another kiss and Sabrina made her way up the stairs to their bedroom. She noticed they had yet to put a blanket on the bed after changing the sheets that morning and went to the closet to pull out one from the top shelf, but upon doing so she accidentally knocked down a medium sized blue plastic bin and it went crashing to the ground. The lid popped off and bounced across the room, spilling the contents all over the carpet.

"Dammit!" Sabrina cursed and dropped to her knees to start picking up the spilled items and froze.

She quickly realized the things in the container were pictures of her and Bill from high school all the way until right before they broke up. There were also movie stubs and festival tickets from dates they had went on, plus other little trinkets from when they were together. After all that time, Bill had hung on to all of it, safely tucked away in his closet. She couldn't help but smile at the memories that flooded her mind. But then her eyes fell on a small ring box covered with green velvet—she definitely didn't remember that.

Tentatively, she reached out and picked it up. She carefully opened it and gasped, covering her mouth with her free hand. Staring back at her was a ring with an oval cut imperial yellow topaz gem accented by two round diamonds on either side set in a thin sterling silver band. It was beautiful and she couldn't take her eyes off of the jewel that reminded her so much of the man's eyes who had had her heart since they were teenagers. Holding her breath, she took the ring from its holder and saw the inscription written on the inside of the band.

_ my first & my last _

"Oh, Bill!" Sabrina breathed. There was no doubt the ring was meant for her, but when had he gotten it?

"Babe, I heard something fall are you…"

Sabrina's eyes snapped up to the doorway as Bill's words faded away while he crossed over the threshold. She carefully stood when he started walking towards her. He was smiling when he gently took the ring and its box from her and crossed to the bed. She turned to watch him while he nestled the ring back in its holder and placed the open box on the nightstand beside the bed.

"So, there's one thing I haven't told you," he started and sat on the edge of the bed. He waited for her to sit next to him before he continued, both of them adjusting to look at each other. "I was planning on proposing to you on the day we broke up."

"Oh, Bill!" she said, tears filling her eyes and reaching out for his hand. "I didn't know! I'm so sorry!"

"Hey," he said softly, squeezing her hand. "It’s OK now. No one knew except for your dad because I had asked him for his permission to do it. Well, until recently. I told Jimmy after the Valentine's Day fiasco."

"Bill…I-I don't even know what to say. I'm so sorry!"

"Sabi," he said, raising his hand to cup her cheek. "I've come to realize that we had to take the paths we did to end up where we are now. Things were amazing when we were younger, but now…Baby, I can't even put into words how happy I am that I get to wake up next to you every day."

Her only response was surging forward and crashing her lips to his with her fingers twisting into his hair. The kiss was instantly heated, mouths opening, and tongues teasing in to explore. He turned to push her down to the mattress and they caressed and kissed each other, tugging at clothing until they were lying skin to skin.

Their movements slowed then, taking their time in lavishing attention on every part of their bare bodies that filled the room with the sounds of their combined pleasure, taking turns with sending each other over the edge and into earth-shattering ecstasy with their mouths.

When she was panting, trying to recover from yet another orgasm, Bill kissed and nipped his way up her body, blazing a trail that had her arousal thrumming through her again by the time his lips captured hers again. The tip of his cock brushed at her dripping entrance, and they both cried out as he sank himself into her. His thrusts were slow and sensual, her legs locking around his waist while her hips met every one of his strokes. Gazing into each other's eyes, words and promises of love and devotion fell from their lips and when their combined releases washed over them in waves they clung to each other as they rode the high together.

The lovemaking had been passionate and carried over into the afterglow where they shared lazy kisses, eventually ending up with her back snuggled against his chest, his arms wound around her while he kissed up and down her shoulders.

Her fingers drew random patterns on his arms and her eyes drifted to the ring still sitting on the nightstand.

"Bill?" she said cautiously, her heart leading her words.

"Hmm?" he replied, his lips moving to her neck.

"Will you marry me?"

He froze mid kiss, his brain trying to figure out if he heard her correctly. "What?"

She turned onto her back to gaze into his surprised face. "Will you marry me?"

The grin that took over his face was bright enough to turn day into night, showcasing his heart stopping dimples. He kissed her quickly and then moved to jump over her. "OK…OK…I need to do this right."

She sat up, watching as his feet hit the ground and he grabbed the ring from its box. He dropped to one knee beside the bed and her smile suddenly matched his.

"Sabi," he started, holding out the ring to her. "I have loved you since we were kids and I know the road we took to get to this point was bumpy, but there is no where I'd rather be and no one I would rather spend my life with. Will you make me the happiest man in the world and marry me?"

"Yes, Bill!" Sabrina exclaimed with tears in her eyes. "Yes, I'll marry you!"

Bill could barely contain himself as he finally slipped the ring on her finger, and the moment it was where it belonged he was kissing her and gently guiding her to lay back onto the mattress. 

"I love you, Sabi!"

"I love you, too, Bill!" 

This time when they made love, the future that danced before their eyes was filled with visions of their wedding, their honeymoon, and the family they had always dreamed they would create together.

They were finally where they were meant to be all along.

  
  


**_The End._ **

  
  



End file.
